Kelvin Bowoto
A digital transformation of South Africa’s cricket ecosystem could be in the works, harnessing artificial intelligence and blockchain technology to improve the sport’s popularity among fans while establishing new revenue streams for spectators, players, and businesses.
The results of a pilot collaboration between LootMogul, an Indian sports technology startup, Cricket South Africa, and the Durban Super Giants demonstrated an increase in fan engagement with cricket gaming platforms, indicating that digitalization has the potential to transform the sport.
According to Vibhu Srivastava, the digital marketing director at LootMogul, “it indicates the significant potential for future business opportunities.”
On February 23, LootMogul announced the results of the month-long pilot.
After implementing an AI, blockchain, and metaverse-led strategy, an average of 4.05 million platform visits were observed in one month. These equate to 48,177 average new monthly games played and a 242.5% increase in the number of games played per month.
The collaboration aimed to bridge the gap between cricket’s physical and digital worlds, providing fans with a more comprehensive and immersive experience.
- ATTENTION: Techrectory gives ₦5,000 monthly to our top readers, CLICK HERE to become a winner.
Notably, the collaboration with the team entails constructing digital twins of South African stadiums, players, and other aspects of the sport. The digital maps are presented as games on websites and applications, providing spectators with a virtual yet realistic sense of being in the thick of cricket action.
According to LootMogul, the interactive gaming platform feature allows fans to participate in the sport beyond live matches, resulting in a year-round relationship with the sport.
Cricket South Africa and LootMogul announced the relationship on December 5, while the agreement with the Durban Super Giants was announced in January, when LootMogul was introduced as the official Cricket Metaverse Gaming Partner.
South Africa has been a key power in cricket since the first tour by a British test team in 1888. Cricket was sanctioned throughout the Apartheid era, but it took off after 1994 as a sport for all South Africans, and the country is now ranked fifth in the world test rankings and third in the one-day international (ODI) rankings.
Domestically, however, the sport lags behind others such as football and rugby as a spectator sport, and Cricket South Africa is working to increase the sport’s fan base.
The digitization effort, which is based on technology and the use of artificial intelligence, promises to connect fans to the sport, resulting in increased fan interest.
Techrectory with Agency Report.
