Lenovo is the official technology partner of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but what exactly does that mean? And more importantly, how is Lenovo using its tech might to improve the spectator, organizer, and team experience?
To find out, I sat down with Ryan McCurdy, SVP and president of Lenovo North America, just before the start of the U.S. vs Australia match.
From digitally smoothing jittery ref cam footage to creating digital avatars of all 1,200+ athletes to help officials make more accurate calls and fans better understand the game, our conversation covered nearly as much ground as Bruno Guimarães does in a match.
Smoothing the match day jitters
Sticking cameras on refs for a live on-field POV is not new, but the footage has historically been shaky and unsettling. For the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Lenovo decided to address this.
"Head cams have been around for a while, but the problem is the referee is really moving, and it was too jittery to kind of get a good picture,” says McCurdy. “We're able to — with technology — reduce jitter by 60%. So now you're seeing these really unique, never-seen-before views, literally right in the middle of the action."
The key here is using technology, i.e., digital stabilization, to keep footage smooth, rather than affixing the refs with bulky physical stabilization rigs, which might slow them down or prove distracting.
1,200+ digital athlete avatars
One of the biggest undertakings before the start of the tournament was the process of 3D-scanning every athlete (1,200+) to create digital avatars. These avatars serve several purposes.
“They can be used to help in the determination of offsides,” says McCurdy during live games. The digital avatar also appears in live broadcasts to help fans better understand ref calls and reconstruct on-field moments for armchair analysis.
For the actual teams, these scans play a crucial role in powering Lenovo’s FIFA AI Pro app, a fancy, post-match analysis tool for assessing performance and team strategy. It provides insights and metrics for everything under the sun, and more importantly, FIFA AI Pro is available to every participating team’s coaching staff.
Democratizing post-match data
"When we look at the FIFA AI Pro today, this has been distributed to about 300 team analysts from all 48 teams, really democratizing the access for all these clubs that have the latest, greatest information," says McCurdy.
At present, FIFA AI Pro's insights are for teams and officiants only, but there is talk of opening up post-match insights to fans, as well. This is something that the NHL did in 2023 with game data, much to the delight of hockey fans everywhere.
Moreover, ensuring every FIFA World Cup team has access to the same level of AI-backed individual and team insights during the tournament ultimately makes for a fairer and more fun competition.
Improving the live fan experience
When it comes to match day, Lenovo’s role in making sure things run smoothly might not seem obvious, but the tech giant is responsible for everything from helping keep facilities secure to ensuring that those watching worldwide don’t miss a beat of the action on TV.
When it comes to safety, similar to the digital player avatars, Lenovo “made digital twins of all 16 stadiums,” says McCurdy. “This allows for the FIFA Command Center in Dallas to look at what's going on in [real-time] and monitor the situation there.”
Lenovo is also helping fans enjoy the game in more pragmatic ways. For example, to help folks avoid wandering a packed stadium, “we have a wayfinding app where fans can find the best path to their seat. For fans who haven't come to an enormous event like this, it really makes the experience better.”
Lenovo’s World Cup app can also be used to check concession and bathroom lines in real-time, all to help you avoid missing a moment of World Cup fun.
Bigger than the Super Bowl
Ultimately, the FIFA World Cup is right up there with the Olympics as one of the largest sporting events in the world.
"It sounds hyperbolic, but we’re expecting over 5 billion unique humans to consume and watch the World Cup—1.5 billion fans watching for the final. The Super Bowl is around 125 million. So we're talking 5 to 10x the size of the audience," notes McCurdy.
Translation: a whole lot of people are counting on Lenovo, as the tournament's tech partner, not to drop the ball. With over 100 matches, that sounds pretty stressful. So, why do it? Obviously, there are clear branding benefits to such a massive partnership, but what else is Lenovo getting out of this arrangement?
"If you can deliver at scale to billions of fans, you can certainly integrate your technology into a company that has a distributed workforce and a global supply chain,” says McCurd. “So it really helps us to kind of prove out and test the technology on just a massive scale"
More from Tom's Guide
- 'I don't think customers want another app or chatbot': Lenovo exec on why AI must become your 'Personal Twin'
- An ‘iPhone moment’ for your eyes — why Xpanceo is betting big on smart contact lenses as the future of AR
- I went to Sweden to watch bike helmets get smashed into anvils — 3 things I learned at the MIPS test lab
