opta annual 2011
DESCRIPTION
A publication to celebrate Opta's success during 2011TRANSCRIPT
www.optasports.com
Annual 2011
Since Opta started analysing all Champions League games in 2003, Arsenal became the first team ever to record zero shots in a match, when they lost 1-3 to Barcelona in March 2011.0
Manchester United conceded six goals at home in the league (against Manchester City) for the first time since September 1930 (4-7 vs Newcastle).6
Xavi made 102 passes in the first half alone against BATE Borisov in the 2011-12 Champions League Group Stage.102
Miroslav Klose scored nine goals from just 11 shots on target for Germany in Euro 2012 Qualifying.
Kevin Davies committed 123 fouls in the 2010-11 Premier League, the most by a player since Opta began their analysis on the league back in 1996.123
150Sporting Gijón’s 1-0 win at the Bernabéu in April 2011 ended a run of 150 league games unbeaten at home for José Mourinho, a run stretching over four clubs in nine years.
In 2011, Paraguay became the
first nation to reach the final of
Copa América without winning
a single game in normal play.0
New Zealand were the only unbeaten team at the 2011 Rugby World Cup and they were also the only unbeaten side at the 2010 football World Cup.0
Cristiano Ronaldo set a new record for the most goals scored in a single season in La Liga in 2010/11, beating the previous best by two strikes.
Australia became the 12th nation to provide
a Tour de France winner and the first new
country since Germany in 1997.12
No side have scored as many
goals as Blackpool did in the
2010-11 Premier League season
and still been relegated.55West Bromwich Albion set a new Premier
League record of 34 consecutive matches
without keeping a clean sheet, between 29th
August 2010 & 8th May 2011.34Arsenal hit the woodwork more often than any other team in 2010-11 and had their own uprights struck the fewest times. If all teams’ shots which hit the woodwork had found the net, the Gunners would have won the title with four games to spare.22 & 3
Novak Djokovic became only the sixth man to win three Grand Slams in one year, joining Laver, Connors, Wilander, Federer & Nadal.
When he had a spot-kick saved in March 2011 against Mainz, Nuri Sahin equalled a Bundesliga record by missing a fourth successive penalty.4
There were 17 hat-tricks scored in the 2010-11 Premier League, beating the previous record of 16 set in a 20-team season back in both 1995/96 & 1997/98.17In 2010/11, Arles Avignon went
23 consecutive top-flight matches without a win, breaking the all-time Ligue 1 record.
Wayne Rooney became only the second man to earn two red cards as an England player when he was sent off against Montenegro, joining David Beckham.2 Iker Casillas only made five saves
in qualifying for the European Championships in seven matches.5
Alania Vladikavkaz reached the 2011 Russian Cup final without scoring a single goal in any of the previous rounds, getting a bye in one game and winning three 0-0 draws on penalty shoot outs. They scored in the final but lost 1-2 to CSKA Moscow.0
Opta Annual 2011 Finding Beauty in the Detail
It’s been quite a year.
Throughout 2011 we’ve seen Opta continue to grow. We’ve
added new clients and developed our relationships with
existing ones. We’ve built our business across Europe and
expanded into new and exciting territories farther afield.
It’s been a period of genuine innovation, both within
Opta Towers and from our clients. The markets in which we
operate have seen the established players joined by some
truly groundbreaking start-up companies.
We’ve seen our data used in ways that would have been
unimaginable even a few years ago. More and more fans
are interrogating, interacting with and debating the stats we
produce on a daily basis. Across every type of media we are
increasingly seeing our brand used as a mark of credibility
and authenticity.
There are stats. And then there are Opta stats.
Away from the media we have been busy assisting the world
of professional sport with business-critical processes and
multi-million pound decisions. We have continued to develop
our cutting edge products and they are now being used by
the biggest clubs across the world.
But for us, that’s not enough. We have big plans for 2012.
We want to continue to develop, improve and grow. The Opta
journey has only just begun. Watch this space.
Happy New Year
Aidan Cooney
CEO
Opta
Finding Beauty in the Detail
1
A Year of Innovation
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Innovation
As more and more clients are using Opta data we are starting to see some real innovation from companies big and small.
New platforms and new technologies are helping to fuel a growing thirst for detailed sports data across the world. Publishers,
bookmakers and media companies are striving to up the ante in the way they provide services to their customers and advertisers alike.
Here are just a few examples of the ways in which Opta have helped.
Barcelona completed 2,485 more passes than Real Madrid in their five competitive encounters in 2010/11.2,485
2
Opta and FourFourTwo joined forces to give fans
the chance to become true armchair analysts. For
the first time our most detailed live data was made
available to fans through the Stats Zone iPhone app.
Using Stats Zone, fans can view, compare and analyse data
from The Premier League and The Champions League as it
happens and share their analysis via Twitter and Facebook.
Stats Zone was voted as one of 2011’s Apps of the Year by Apple.
FourFourTwo - Stats Zonewww.fourfourtwo.com/statszone
During 2011, Opta and Orange entered into a
data supply agreement that saw Opta provide
live sports information across Orange mobile
and web services.
The deal extended a previous agreement for an additional
two years and covers football, cricket, golf, tennis, rugby
union, rugby league and Formula 1. The announcement
coincided with the re-launch of the Orange Digital web
portal that now includes an extensive mix of sports editorial,
commentaries, live scores and statistics.
Orangewww.web.orange.co.uk/p/sport/home
“Extraordinarily impressive”
EPL Talk
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Innovation
Between January 1st and May 22nd 2011, Robin van Persie scored in nine consecutive Premier League matches away from home; a new record.
Over the last 12 months Opta have produced a
range of widgets designed to give our customers
ultimate flexibility in how they publish and display
stats on their website.
One of the most popular club websites in the world,
LiverpoolFC.tv, have implemented several of these widgets,
allowing their fans to compare and contrast performances of
all of the players in the The Premier League.
Liverpool FCwww.liverpoolfc.tv
93
Our brand is being increasingly recognised by
bookmakers as one that adds credibility and
authority to their fan-facing content. The biggest
betting exchange in the world, Betfair, have started
to use Opta content within blogs and editorial features designed
to help punters plan their betting activity more confidently.
Betfairwww.betfair.com
In 2011 Opta became the official data provider
for Mediacoach, a cutting edge football analysis
product created by Mediapro and the Spanish
Liga Board (LFP). Mediacoach allows the
technical departments of all clubs in the Liga BBVA and
Liga Adelante to conduct real-time analysis of every game in
Spain’s top two divisions.
Mediapro /LFPwww.lfp.es
Bayern Munich scored 25 league goals in the early part of 2011-12 without conceding a single one in reply in the process – a new record in Bundesliga history.25
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Innovation
Opta’s rugby operation was on top form during
the 2011 Rugby World Cup, supplying data to
several of the teams involved, as well as high
profile media clients across the world.
We also saw innovation in the use of our granular rugby
data including the Live Rugby app produced for Android
powered devices.
Live Rugby RWC Android Appwww.liverugbyapp.com
4
One of Germany’s top sports newspapers, Bild, has created
a match centre using Opta’s widgets. They have integrated
fixtures, line-ups, live commentaries and standings alongside
news content social plug-ins to create the ultimate online live
match experience.
Bild.dewww.bild.de
Opta have been working with Bantr, a new social
network designed specifically for football fans.
Using Bantr, fans can “check in” to a particular
match and suggest preferred line-ups, substitutions
and tactical changes. They can then debate and discuss the
action with their friends from within the application.
Bantr.tvwww.bantr.tv
The IG Markets Pro Cycling Index has been
designed by Opta to reward both moments of
brilliance and months of consistent performance.
We source results from over 100 top international
road races throughout the season and races are ranked
by our expert panel, based on their prestige and their
importance to cycling fans.
IG Markets Pro Cycling Indexwww.igmarkets.co.uk/procyclingindex
Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer didn’t concede a goal in 1,147 minutes in early 2011-12, setting a new club record for competitive games.1,147
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Innovation
5
Opta worked with leading enterprise software company SAP
to produce a sports data analytics experience for its website
visitors. Users can interrogate data from The Champions
League or Rugby World Cup in great detail, comparing
players and teams across numerous categories and
displaying the results in a variety of different ways.
SAPexperience.sap.com
WhoScored have used Opta’s wealth of data to
create the ultimate must-visit online destination for
football fans. Visitors can compare and contrast
the performances of players and teams from
leagues around the world in incredible detail.
WhoScored.comwww.whoscored.com
For more news from Opta
throughout 2012, follow
@OptaSuit on Twitter.
Brazil became the first nation to fail to convert a single penalty in a Copa América penalty shootout, in their quarter-final against Paraguay in 2011; the Brazilians didn’t convert any of their four attempts. 0
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Development
A Year of Development
The world of sport never stands still.
Fans are demanding ever more engaging content from our clients. They want it to be available 24 hours day and across
different platforms.
At Opta, we’ve helped some of the biggest names in the world of sport provide best-in-breed services, some for the first time and
some as the result of long-standing partnerships.
These are just a few examples of how we’ve helped to build these relationships.
8
In the UK and Germany we have continued our successful relationship with BSkyB. This has included
a multi-platform and multi-sport contract renewal for Sky Sports in the UK and the development of our
integration with Sky Sports in Germany to include content provision for their new channel,
Sky Sport News HD.
BSkyB
Opta has been helping Castrol activate its high profile football sponsorships for a number of years. In
2011, the Castrol Rankings entered its third year and a number of digital projects were launched in
advance of the 2012 European Championships, including the Castrol Euro 2012 predictors. Opta also
provided data for the “Ronaldo – Tested to the Limit” documentary, a film that has been viewed almost 10
million times to date.
Castrol
We have worked with Chelsea’s performance team for several seasons. In 2011 we continued to develop
that relationship but also broadened it out to include data supply to other areas of the club. Chelsea’s
media team utilised our data within their match programme and across their fantasy league and
broadcast offerings.
Chelsea
In 2011 Opta began working with Canal+, the number one pay TV broadcaster in France. This deal
covers data and editorial services for a number of football and rugby competitions.
Canal+
Manchester United won the 2010-11 league title despite picking up only 25 points away from home; the lowest total by any Premier League title winner.25
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Development
9
One of French football’s major clubs, Olympique de Marseille, have started to use Opta data across
different areas of their operation. This includes using the Opta Video Scout product to assist with player
scouting and recruitment, using Opta Facts on their official club website and using the Opta Live Monitor
tool to enhance their in-house TV channel.
Olympique Marseille
We have enhanced our relationship with the French Football Federation to include provision of Opta data to
the governing body’s marketing department. This includes Opta Facts, infographics and live statistics and
the data used in the Emotion Bleus CRM program and also on stadium graphics during home games.
Fédération Française de Football
The versatility of Opta data in a club environment has also been utilised by Manchester City. We’ve
continued to work with their performance analysis and player recruitment teams but increasingly
our data has been used in their digital marketing work, including powering the match centres on the
Manchester City website.
Manchester City
For a full list of our clients and
to see more testimonials, visit
our website
www.optasports.com
A Year of Expansion
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Expansion
In March 2011, Opta announced a multi-year partnership
with Major League Soccer to significantly enhance MLS’ data
collection and display capabilities.
This new deal complemented MLS’ existing partnership
with the Elias Sports Bureau and allowed MLS to continue to
MLSwww.mlssoccer.com
2011 saw Opta expand beyond our traditional European heartland.
Our deal with Major League Soccer saw us set up an Opta collection centre in New York, and we also opened a sales office in
Sydney, Australia.
enhance the League’s digital products by bringing
best-in-class sports information to MLS fans.
As part of this deal, MLS and Opta built a
new North American data collection hub in MLS’ Digital
Headquarters in New York. From this hub, MLS and other
North American soccer games are analysed using Opta’s
market-leading data collection software.
This data is made available to fans on the official MLS website,
MLSsoccer.com. Fans can analyse all MLS games in great
detail using the Opta Chalkboard facility, as well as checking
out collated stats by player and team throughout the season.
David Beckham was booked in five of his first six 2011 MLS matches and 10 times overall in the regular season.5
“The deal with Opta allows for deeper analysis of all MLS
matches and ensure that MLS is at the cutting edge of
data technologies in 2011 and beyond.”
Chris Schlosser
Director of Digital Strategy, MLS
10
11
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Expansion
New York
Paris
Madrid
Sydney
London (HQ) / Leeds Munich
Milan / Bassano
Cape Town
Larvik
Beijing
Seoul
Riga
Miami
Opta Offices
Opta Representatives
Sao Paulo
Sofia
We now have a truly global footprint, supplying our content to all corners of the world through our network of offices and
representatives.
In May 2011, Zlatan Ibrahimovic won his eighth consecutive domestic title in three different leagues (Eredivisie, Serie A & La Liga), for five different clubs (Ajax, Juventus, Inter, Barcelona & AC Milan).8
A Year of Recognition
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Recognition
Opta Quizzes2011 was the year that the
Opta Football Pub Quiz was born.
The inaugural London quiz in March was
won by Sky Sports with September’s
return fixture being won by the team
from The Guardian. The team from RMC
triumphed in the Paris event in June.
The 2011 Rugby World Cup saw just 5.46 tries scored per game, the lowest average since the 1991 tournament.5.46
12
Opta Annual 2011 A Year of Recognition
For the second year in succession,
Opta was named as one of the
fastest-growing technology companies
in the Sunday Times Tech Track 100 list.
Opta were placed at number 74 in the
2011 list, rising from 85th place in 2010.
TechTrack 100
Our social media work has received
national and international recognition
in 2011. At The Social Buzz Awards in
November we collected the prize for
Best Use of Twitter, and we also won
Golden Twit Awards for Best B2c and
Best Sports Twitter accounts. We’ve
also had nominations for The Drum
Digital Awards (DADIs), The Shorty
Awards and The NOPAs.
Awards
In November 2011, Sachin Tendulkar became the first batsman to pass 15,000 runs in test cricket.15,000
13
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