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In recent years, technology has profoundly transformed the world of football, introducing tools that have improved the precision of refereeing decisions and understanding of the game. A key example that marked the introduction of technology into Italian football is the episode of goal by Muntari during Milan-Juventusin which the ball clearly entered the goal without the referee validating the goal. This event led to the introduction of the goal-line technologyan indispensable tool today.
These are some of the topics addressed during our interview with Fabio Caressaborn in ’67, journalist, sports commentator and television host. Our Maria Bosco interviewed him in this new episode of the series The Science of Footballexploring the major technological innovations that have changed the world of football and reviewing some episodes that have made the history of this sport.
“The thing that has had the most influence in recent years is not so much a tool itself, but data analysis, that is, the ability we now have to have data available to explain what happens on the pitch“, says Caressa. Clubs like Liverpool, for example, use advanced software from artificial intelligencesuch as TacticAI, to optimize strategies such as corner kick management. This tool, trained with Premier League data, is able to suggest the best tactics to maximize your scoring chances, demonstrating how data can influence technical decisions
The evolution of technology has also changed the management of athletes’ health. Today, by monitoring physiological parameters such as heart rate and resistance to effort, it is possible to prevent injuries thanks to predictive systems based on data analysis. “I spoke about this recently with Simone Inzaghi – Caressa tells us -, because the Inter coach was the first to talk about it. He introduced a scientific detection system for turnover, which is also predictive of possible injuries. And this system is based precisely on the data that they have available from a medical point of view“.
Looking to the future, the possibility of replacing the role of the linesman with a second referee on the pitch was also discussed: “The figure of the linesman is now becoming clearly obsolete – explains Caressa -. Instead of two linesmen having a single referee, it will be better to have two referees, one for each half of the pitch, and perhaps strengthen the part VAR by bringing in an image expert“, he concluded.
