BBC Sport Article - 27th August 2025 3:38pm
Chris McLaughlin - Sports news correspondent, BBC Scotland
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c9d0wypw8xzo
This article interviews Tony Bloom, the new investor at Hearts and owner of Brighton & Hove Albion. He aims to make the club more successful with goals such as winning the Scottish Premiership within a decade. However what sets him aside from others is his expertise in data and artificial intelligence with him already having credited success thanks to data analytics with Brighton and Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise.
Analysts believe his AI-driven approach to understanding game probabilities and player performance could give Hearts a major edge against other Scottish clubs. AI is reshaping football, especially with tactical analysis. Clubs can now simulate how a potential signing would fit into their team using player data from past matches. Experts like John Park see this as the next revolution, while traditionalists like Livingston’s David Martindale remain sceptical, arguing AI lacks the intuition coaches have.
Half of Scotland’s Premiership clubs already use AI in some form, though these cost a lot and creates a barrier for soem club. Analysts warn in the article that if Celtic and Rangers fully use AI, the gap could increase.
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Good Quotation
'AI is the new battlefield in football' - Tony Bloom "AI can't get a feel," - Livingston manager David Martindale "AI is using data and numbers - I've grown up playing football all my days. "So I think people making footballing decisions within a footballing environment, I would trust a lot more than AI.”
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