AI Helps Brazilian Teenager Secure Football Contract in Italy
Quick Look
- Brazilian teenager Leo Veiga, 18, secured a youth contract with Italian club Spezia after an AI app analyzed his skills.
- The app, from Swiss company Footbao, identified him as a top performer, leading to a training opportunity with Lecce and subsequent scouting.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Young footballers often struggle to get noticed by professional clubs. Technology companies are developing apps that use AI to analyze player skills from videos, potentially democratizing the scouting process.
Brazilian teenager Leo Veiga had almost given up on his dream of becoming a professional footballer when artificial intelligence helped him secure a spot in the youth ranks of an Italian club.
Tech companies promising to “democratise” football are launching apps that allow young players to upload videos recorded on their phone of them showcasing their ball skills.
AI is then used to analyse and score their performance, which is sent to scouts and clubs.
The 18-year-old Veiga was stuck playing for a small club in his home state of Santa Catarina in southern Brazil when he discovered one of these apps, from Swiss company Footbao.
A YouTube video offered the highest-scoring users to train for a few days with the Italian club Lecce. Veiga was selected and caught the eye of a scout, who decided to take a chance on him.
“AI opened a new door,” he said. Italy, where he is now under contract with the youth academy of the club Spezia, which plays in Italy’s second division.
Open Questions
- What is the long-term success rate of players identified through AI scouting apps?
- How does the AI analysis compare to traditional scouting methods?
- What are the ethical implications of AI in sports recruitment?
- Are there other similar AI-powered football scouting platforms?
