Manchester City go even more high-tech with Acronis player-data deal

Hybrid cloud solutions company to partner with club and boost team performances and help analyse the opposition

 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. The club is to partner tech firm to boost analysis of players and team performances. Reuters

Fans of opposing teams may well be dismayed to learn that Abu Dhabi-owned reigning English Premier League football champions Manchester City are set to cement their dominance further.

Acronis, a global leader in hybrid cloud solutions, on Tuesday announced a global technology partnership with City. As part of the partnership, the tech company will help the club to enhance and develop its data back-up and storage capabilities.

In top flight football, teams rely on data to review their performances and analyse the opposition. Developing a winning game plan involves meticulous analysis of many key elements, including passes, touches, set-piece goals, player heat maps and much more - which are studied before, during and after every match in order to get that vital competitor edge over the opposition.

“At the highest level of competition, data is a critical asset. We are confident this partnership will benefit Manchester City, Acronis, and all our partners and customers,” said John Zanni, president of Acronis.

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Technology, data in particular, is increasingly important to teams in the ever-developing digital age. So much so that during the days leading up to important matches, data is available through iPads in the Manchester City locker room so that players can review historical data with their coaches and make last-minute adjustments to the playbook. It is also vital for the team to analyse data in their post-match analysis.

“A football club like Manchester City has a huge volume of data – covering everything from our players and fans to the day to day operation of our business – and we are excited to leverage Acronis’ expertise to enhance our data storage and backup functions," said Damian Willoughby, senior vice president of partnership at City Football Group.

Today enhanced by AI-based Active Protection technology, blockchain-based authentication and a unique hybrid-cloud architecture, Acronis was founded in Singapore in 2003, and incorporated in Switzerland in 2008. It has more than five  million consumers and 500,000 businesses worldwide, including 79 of the top 100 most valuable brands, the firm said.

There may be further possibilities down the line for Acronis. Manchester City is one of eight teams comprising the City Football Group, which includes New York City FC, Melbourne City FC, Yokohama F Marinos, Club Atlético Torque and FC Girona.