Some moments in football are unforgettable, like Liverpool’s epic “corner taken quickly” goal in the 2019 UEFA Champions League semi-finals. It led to Divock Origi’s goal and a remarkable comeback. That’s why Liverpool knows corner kicks are big chances to score, but planning them isn’t easy. Can AI help? Google’s DeepMind team thinks so and has started to create Tactic AI. It’s a smart program that predicts what might happen during a corner kick, suggests the best strategies for teams like Liverpool, and creates more moments like this:
Did Jurgen Klopp’s departure at the end of the season push Liverpool to do this, or did they not want to stay away from AI developments? Either way, if this project succeeds, it may change football we know a lot.
What is TacticAI?
TacticAI is an artificial intelligence system developed in partnership with Liverpool FC and AI researchers to enhance football tactics, particularly focusing on corner kicks. This innovative tool utilizes advanced AI techniques to analyze past corner kick scenarios and provide valuable insights to coaches.
Here’s how it works: The system operates by employing a geometric deep learning approach, which allows it to represent cornerkick scenarios as graphs.
In these graphs, each player is depicted as a node, containing various attributes such as position, velocity, and height, while the relationships between players are represented by edges. By leveraging this unique representation, TacticAI can accurately predict potential outcomes of corner kicks and propose tactical adjustments to optimize success.
What’s really cool about TacticAI is that it can come up with different scenarios for corner kicks, so coaches can try out new ideas and see what works best. It also helps coaches review past plays more easily, so they can learn from what’s happened before.
After lots of testing with real football experts, TacticAI has proven to be really helpful. Coaches can rely on it to give them smart advice that could make a big difference in their team’s performance.
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In simple terms, TacticAI is like having a super-smart assistant coach who knows all about football tactics. It’s there to help coaches make better decisions during corner kicks, which could lead to more goals and more wins for their team.
