Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraq Football Association (IFA) has inked a deal with Wyscout platform operator Hudl B.V. to use sophisticated video, performance analysis, and scouting technologies in Iraqi football.
According to the IFA release, the arrangement would include all Iraq Stars League matches, the final rounds of the Iraq Cup, and the Super Cup, with around 400 matches to be studied, tagged, and uploaded to Wyscout in accordance with globally accepted technical standards.
All 20 Iraq Stars League teams will obtain memberships, giving them access to Wyscout’s worldwide database rather than just Iraqi leagues. Clubs will also get video and performance statistics, as well as 10 technical reports every month, for an annual total of over 2,400 reports.
The arrangement also includes Hudl Academy training and specific seminars for technical personnel, which will expose Iraqi coaches and analysts to the data-driven methodologies that are increasingly being employed by professional teams worldwide.
Iraqi national teams will also gain. The deal includes scouting and analysis accounts, Hudl Sportscode performance analysis tools, video storage, and technical and statistical reporting for various age groups.
The move might also help Iraqi players get worldwide attention. Wyscout advertises its platform as the world’s biggest football video and data archive, covering more than 1,000 tournaments worldwide and widely used by teams and scouts for recruiting and performance analysis.
This implies that performances in the Iraq Stars League may become more visible to scouts and recruiting departments overseas, thus increasing Iraqi players’ exposure to foreign clubs.
The IFA said that the deal is part of its vision to improve Iraqi football via the use of contemporary technology and data, as well as the establishment of a centralized technical archive and database that would serve local clubs and national teams.
Hudl has reached similar partnerships with football organizations throughout the globe, including the Turkish Football Federation and professional leagues in other regions, to include match video and performance data into Wyscout for scouting and technical analysis.
For Iraqi football, the deal offers another step toward changing how clubs find talent, study opponents, and evaluate player performance — while also exposing a far larger portion of the country’s domestic football to the global scouting business.
