At a time when teams around the world are relying on technology to gain a competitive edge, FC Barcelona stands out as an organization for not only using technology to its own advantage, but also as a means of elevating the entire sport of soccer, and perhaps sports in general, too.
Barça encompasses pro teams within a range of sports spanning soccer, basketball, roller hockey, futsal, and handball. It has more than 2,000 athletes across its senior teams and youth academies, and can leverage that sample population to test new technologies.
In one such effort between FC Barcelona’s La Liga soccer team and Gatorade, players were outfitted with smart bottles and Band-Aid-like sensor chips to actively track their hydration and nutrition.