Premiership Rugby Cup fixtures will from this week start trialling the ‘smart’ rugby ball which aims to transform the way data is processed by coaches, players and fans alike.
The ball, which has been in development for years, will be used for the last 15 matches of the cup competition, starting with three fixtures on Friday night – Bristol v Bath, London Irish v Harlequins and Newcastle v Leicester.
Chips inside the ball communicate with sensors around the stadium up to 20 times every second, with an artificial intelligence tool then automatically enabling “precise information and insights about the ball’s movement when it is passed and kicked – such as speed, distance and hang-time, for example – to be seen in real-time”, Premiership Rugby said.
