Artificial intelligence analysis of each players’ kick has levelled the playing field between teams and is narrowing the gap, according to tech experts
The World Cup has been packed with shock results thanks to data-sharing AI robots, boffins claim. Artificial intelligence analysis of each players’ every kick has levelled the playing field between teams, according to tech experts.
The tournament has already witnessed a series of upsets. European champions Spain were held to a draw by minnows Cape Verde – ranked 61 places below them – in their group game.
Cristiano Ronaldo ’s Portugal drew with DR Congo despite the teams being separated by 33 world ranking spots. No12 in the world Germany were sent packing by Paraguay – ranked 22 places below them – on penalties.
It was the first time the Germans had ever lost a World Cup spot kick shootout. Experts reckon the reason for the upsets could be the next-level data provided free to all 48 teams at the tournament.
FIFA has created its own bot – Football AI Pro – offering never-before-seen data on 2,000 different metrics.
That is allowing teams’ number-crunchers to work out how to neutralise opponents that would normally give them a battering.
Andrius Kuksta, a tech lead in research and development at data analyst Oxylabs, said: “At the World Cup conversational AI assistants – such as FIFA’s Football AI Pro – are being provided to all teams, allowing coaches and analysts to interact with their data in natural language.
“This technology is particularly valuable for smaller nations that lack dedicated analytics staff, helping to level the playing field by giving every team advanced, user-friendly access to actionable insights.
“Data collection in the 2026 FIFA World Cup has been revolutionised by AI and advanced tracking, capturing over 500 spatial data points-per-second from the match ball, optical player tracking algorithms, and wearable biometric systems.
“This data feeds directly into the FIFA Football Data Platform to give coaches and media real-time analytics.
“It’s great to see that during the FIFA World Cup efforts are being made to level the playing field for all teams through accessible AI tools.”
Andrius warned after tournament minnows from poorer nations could suffer if they could no longer afford the tech.
“The real test comes after the championship,” he said.
“Will advanced AI remain affordable and available to everyone or will it become a privilege for those who can pay but not necessarily play?
“Some technologies, like advanced AI-powered video analysis, may remain difficult for smaller teams to afford.
“Others – such as wearables like chest-mounted monitors that track vitals and performance metrics – are becoming more accessible, expanding data-driven insights for a broader range of teams at future tournaments.”
According to experts from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia AI could decide which nation wins.
Ultimately it may make football boring if all teams have identical insight and follow the same game plan.
Professor of human factors Paul Salmon told news discussion website The Conversation: “AI is fast becoming a key component of high performance sport.
‘It will be leveraged throughout the tournament to support preparation, performance and recovery.
“While it could increase the gap between larger and smaller nations it might also give smaller nations a new edge.
“So could 2026 be the year in which AI genuinely contributes to a World Cup win?
“We won’t see an AI agent scoring a goal or a robot coach calling the shots – at least not yet.
“But there is no doubt the winner of the tournament will have relied on AI along the way.
“In terms of who that will be – well, we could always ask AI.”
Paul said it was the ‘most technologically advanced’ World Cup ever with artificial intelligence touching ‘almost all aspects of the tournament’.
He said bots offer tools to ‘support player, team and match evaluation’, forecast ‘match outcomes and in-game events such as expected goals and assists, corners, passes, opposition tactics’, monitor ‘athlete workload’, calculate ‘injury prediction and detection’ and scout for ‘talent’.
Coaches can use AI alongside conventional data to determine how they approach each game including highlighting opposition strengths they need to negate and weaknesses they can exploit.
High performance staff use it to monitor players’ health and wellbeing and forecast potential injuries.
Paul said AI can have a ‘direct influence’ on the ‘dreaded penalty shootout’.
“Teams will use AI to synthesise historical data to provide insights on goalkeepers and penalty takers’ likely strategies,” he said.
“A key benefit is the speed at which these analyses can be undertaken. What used to take days of old-fashioned human legwork can now be done in hours even for entire squads.
“Should a game go to a shootout AI could very likely influence the winning kick or save.
Paul said the aim of FIFA’s bot was to ‘ensure all nations have access to at least some level of AI support’.
“It remains to be seen which nations actually use it,” he added.
He warned a ‘potential adverse outcome is tactical homogenisation’ – where matches become ‘predictable because every team follows the same AI-generated game plan’.
“While there are many benefits a broad spectrum of risks will need to be managed,” he added.
jerry.lawton@dailystar.co.uk
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