(Hockey news) The International Hockey Federation (FIH) and Sportradar (NASDAQ: SRAD), the leading global sports technology company that brings immersive experiences for sports fans, have announced a global partnership which will make Sportradar the exclusive betting and gaming data rights partner of hockey’s world governing body through to the end of the 2029/30 season.
Sportradar will collect and distribute betting data around the world from all FIH competitions for the next nine years as per the terms and conditions. This includes over 300 matches each season including the FIH Hockey World Cups, FIH Hockey World Cup Qualifiers, FIH Indoor Hockey World Cups, FIH Hockey Pro League and FIH Hockey5s World Cups, as well as the Olympic Qualifiers.
Sportradar will also provide FIH with a bespoke Competition Management platform to make things smoother. Simple and easy-to-use, the platform is perfect against FIH’s rules and regulations and will help in managing competitions, match results, player statistics, rankings and much more. The Competition Management platform will also be made available to all FIH member associations including continental and national associations. FIH will now be able to gather the data to provide more details to glue the fans to sport.
Sportradar will also provide Integrity Services which is part of the agreement. Sportradar’s Universal Fraud Detection Service (UFDS), a successful bet monitoring system, will aid in maintaining the integrity of FIH competitions and protect them from match-fixing and other risks. Officials will also attend Education and prevention workshops.
Ed Blonk, Chief Commercial Officer and Regional CEO APAC, Sportradar said: “Sportradar’s experience and technological know-how will allow us to create bespoke solutions for FIH that will help to elevate the profile of hockey and enable the continued growth of the game. Combined with the expertise in leveraging the power of sports data, we look forward to creating enhanced levels of engagement with hockey fans together with FIH.”
FIH CEO Thierry Weil added: “One of our key initiatives is to develop exciting and entertaining events that are meaningful for athletes as well as fan-focused to attract new fans and boost participation. With Sportradar’s proven track record supporting some of the world’s biggest sports federations, we are confident that this partnership will largely contribute to growing hockey globally through bespoke data. Furthermore, we’re looking forward to benefiting from Sportradar’s expertise in providing intelligence solutions to maintain sport’s integrity.”
