ADRENALIN REPORTS SPORT ORGANIZATIONS TO AI? In the last year and a half, Shah has seen many organizations ramp up from considering AI to actively seeking out capabilities. “It’s now come down to ‘What’s the biggest bang for the buck? What are the ROI opportunities for organizations that adopt AI and how does that provide the least amount of disruption?’” Correspondingly, Canadian startups are seeing sales jump. “It’s probably been the busiest year of our lives,” says Quin Sandler, founder and CEO of Vancouver-based Plantiga, which counts NBA and NCAA teams among those snapping up its smart insole sensors. HOW ARE SPORT ORGANIZATIONS APPLYING AI? BUSINESS OPERATIONS “From that sports organization perspective,” Shah says, “there are definitely the corporate functions… finance, marketing, event operations, branding and HR.” First steps can be modest. The National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA) Canada just announced a partnership with Guelph, ON-based AceCall.ai’s tool targeted to golf facilities. Leveraging AI-powered receptionists, chat agents and email, NGCOA Canada hopes to “reduce daily pressures on staff and maximize profitability.” FAN ENGAGEMENT “Marketing fandom is very different in sports than it is for banking or other industries,” says Shah. At venues, he sees more groups leveraging AI to engage fans in fresh ways. “How do we actually create unique experiences for certain characteristics of fans, whether that’s a fan coming to a ball game with their GENERATIVE AI IN SPORTS IS EXPECTED TO HAVE A CUMULATIVE GLOBAL ECONOMIC IMPACT OF $19.9 TRILLION THROUGH 2030 AND DRIVE 3.5% OF GLOBAL GDP IN 2030. —DELOITTE, THE FUTURE OF GENAI IN SPORTS children or their co-workers?” MEDIA CONTENT In broadcasting too, Laurel Walzak, associate professor of sport media at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), says AI has exciting potential to personalize viewer engagement. With CAMB.AI for example, a tool that’s attracted MLS and NASCAR, Walzak says, “You’re able to, in real time, have voice translations,” and notes the fantastic engagement potential given Canada’s multicultural context. SPONSORSHIP Using AI’s data and predictive properties, Shah says, “How do we think about new partnerships in different ways to create that kind of value based on what fans are actually walking in the door?” SPORTS OPERATIONS On the field, Shah sees AI enhancing “sport performance, player health, player safety, even player development, which is fascinating.” This includes scouting methods too. In a recent study, Walzak and TMU’s Dr. Louis-Étienne Dubois worked with a professional North American soccer team to explore AI’s ability to reduce bias in professional scouting. “The technology shows a lot of promise, and reminds us at the same time, still, there’s a need for the human eye as well,” Walzak says. STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESSFUL AI ADOPTION BREAK IT DOWN AND START SMALL Walzak says it’s key for organizations to analyze operations and “look at each of those categories and types of AI technology → 19 FALL 2025 | ADRENALIN
