Real Madrid kicks off Microsoft deal

Real Madrid may have one of the best strikers in the world in Cristiano Ronaldo but the Spanish team has just signed him a new striking partner – Microsoft – to help the club get closer to its global fanbase.
The four-year agreement will see Microsoft deliver a digital platform that enables fans to access rich content and experiences tailored to their interests.
Powered by Microsoft’s cloud solutions, the platform will offer fans exclusive, personalised and customised content and digital services, creating customised experiences at any time and from any location.
The agreement also has a focus on data visualisation, and representing important statistics and information in a visual format.
“These days, we are all used to seeing in newspapers, magazines and the web, infographics that do a great job of telling a compelling story,” explained Orlando Ayala, corporate vice president and chairman of emerging markets at Microsoft, in a blog post.
“But from the moment it is published, the data is out of date, and maybe you wanted to know more or go deeper, but can’t with that image. This is the real revolution with what we are doing with Real Madrid. The vision is to really enable a dynamic platform that will provide incredible capability in reaching insights and uncovering new ideas, giving fans the opportunity to be the drivers of this discovery and the authors of their own stories.
“Through this partnership, Real Madrid fans around the world will be able to get closer to the game, the club and players, and the fan community in ways we never imagined possible,” added Ayala. “This is a world that can be imagined when centered on the fan, fuelled by passion, and powered by today’s technologies and the cloud.”
Football clubs are increasingly turning to data to get closer to fans and build analytics systems to improve their on-pitch performances. Earlier this year, Bayern Munich signed up to use SAP’s CRM system to boost the interaction with its fans, personalise their experience and reward them for loyalty.
Meanwhile it is also using SAP’s database platform Hana, to improve the performance and monitor the health of Bayern’s players. The deal replicated the partnership between the technology company and the German national team, which was hailed as a major factor in their World Cup triumph.

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