Software substitutes for soccer coaches’ clipboards

Tool developed by computer engineers facilitates tactical preparation, simulations and play analysis through video imagery

By Fábio de Castro

Agência FAPESP – Soccer coaches worldwide are abandoning the good old clipboard for a more efficient alternative in their lectures: software that allows them to work on the team’s tactical preparation, study strategic decisions and simulate and analyze plays through video imagery.

The electronic clipboard for tablet computers, called Tactical Pad, was developed and marketed by ClanSoft, a spinoff company formed in 2009 by computer engineers Pedro Henrique Borges de Almeida, Danilo Lacerda and Fernando Closs, all ex-students of the Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp) Computer Science Institute. The project received funding through a FAPESP Innovative Research in Small Businesses Grant (PIPE).

The current version of the software has been on the market since March 2010 and is used by the coaches of most of the clubs of the São Paulo inland teams—especially coaches in the youth leagues but also coaches of some professional teams, such as Ponte Preta in Campinas—as well as teams such as Internacional (RS), Bahia (BA) and Figueirense (SC). The Tactical Pad is also used by the Portuguese under-21 team and the South Korean national team.

Almeida says that the tool has already been tested by members of the technical commissions for the professional teams Palmeiras and Corinthians and will be adopted by all teams in the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) youth leagues.

In 2009, Almeida was working toward his master’s degree in Computer Science at Unicamp on the use of tablets for educational applications when Closs, who worked with Lacerda at the Venturus Innovation and Technology Center, suggested that the three work together to develop an electronic clipboard. The trio studied the market and evaluated the development level of existing software used for the same purpose.

“We soon realized that Brazilian coaches didn’t use this type of technological solution. In talking with some of them, we realized the reason was that the available software wasn’t user-friendly. It had confusing interfaces and incomplete functionalities. We also noted that the use of the mouse and keyboard made them useless for lectures and that the graphics solutions were generally very amateur and unattractive,” Almeida told Agência FAPESP.

The product was conceived through a collaboration with professionals from different technical commissions who later became users of the tool. During its development, the main collaborator was the ex-coordinator of the Palmeiras youth league teams, Marcos Biasotto, who now works at Grêmio (RS).

“We worked closely with the Palmeiras youth league teams. As one of the main difficulties we found was the usability of the existing software, we saw that it was fundamental to consult with the professionals the product would really be useful for. That way, we were able to create functionalities aligned with user expectations,” said Almeida.

The researchers realized that to be useful, the software would have to be very user-friendly. Almeida said that even sports professionals with considerable computer experience will not use this type of software if they have to spend a lot of time creating a simulation.

“We also perceived that much of the existing software didn’t prioritize graphic quality. The visual aspect is very important, and good graphic representation of a play provides a fundamental cognitive stimulus so the athlete can assimilate what is being asked of him,” he said.

The Tactical Pad, which runs on Windows, Android or iOS gadgets, can be used in two ways. One way is to simulate the team’s tactical positioning as if the tablet were a virtual clipboard, with personalized elements such as uniform colors and player names and a 3D visualization option. The other way is to use the software to analyze video images.

“The software allows for simple editing functions. After filming players from their own team or the opposing team, coaches can choose scenes where fouls are made, for example, in order to analyze positioning,” said Almeida.

“The trainer can make notes on the video itself in freehand, highlighting the most important points of a play. A special projection mode can be used as well, where only the content of interest is shown on the projector,” he explained. The software is in use not only by coaches but also by sports journalists.

Phase one of the PIPE project was dedicated to the development of the electronic clipboard. The ClanSoft researchers are now working on phase two, already approved by FAPESP, to transform the software into a tool to aid in the technical management of professional team youth leagues.

Another functionality in phase two of the project will be the integration of the electronic clipboard with online social networks. “Often, the coach or someone from the technical commission isn’t present but could benefit from access to data on technical aspects of the team,” Almeida affirmed.

In addition to soccer, there are versions of the Tactical Pad for basketball, indoor soccer and handball. “For now, the best application has been for field soccer. We will begin to market the basketball version in the United States,” said Almeida.

The Tactical Pad was based on Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Windows Forms and programming libraries specific to the Tablet PC. For export to iPad and Android versions, other technologies, such as OpenGl and Engines 3D, were used.

More information at www.tacticalpad.com