Genius Sports Limited, a data, technology and commercial company that powers the ecosystem connecting sports, betting and media, on Tuesday, said it has been selected by the Argentine Football Association (AFA) as the exclusive official data and streaming partner for all AFA competitions.
The AFA is the oldest soccer association in South America. As the national governing body of soccer in Argentina, AFA organizes the entire league system from the Liga Profesional de Futbol – LPF” (1st division) to Primera D, domestic cup competitions, and the men’s, women’s and Olympic national teams.
Genius Sports said it will help to connect fans, brands and sportsbooks around the world with all levels of Argentinian soccer, covering more than 3,300 games per season and 13 competitions.
The company was granted exclusive rights to capture and distribute official AFA data and live video broadcasts for the regulated betting industry, which it said will provide sportsbooks with content to help acquire, engage and retain customers.
The AFA said the partnership will be central to its strategy to increase fan engagement and visibility of Argentinian soccer.
The association said Genius Sports has also been granted official data distribution rights for media across all AFA competitions, enabling brands, publishers and advertisers to exploit its suite of personalized advertising, content and fan-messaging solutions.
To help grow Argentinian football’s global reach, Genius Sports will install GeniusLive+ cameras at more than 100 venues, which it said will capture broadcast-quality streams that will power AFA's OTT platform.
Genius Sports will work in partnership with Pixellot and Argentinian company La Corte for the production of all GeniusLive+ events, enabling AFA to live stream over 2,000 new games from eight competitions per season.
Genius Sports noted it serves as an integrity partner to the English Premier League, Dimayor Colombia and the German Football Association, and said it will continue to safeguard all levels of Argentinian soccer from the threats of match-fixing and betting-related corruption. According to the company, its bet monitoring system will provide 24/7 visibility and protection, comparing global betting patterns with predictive algorithms to automatically flag any potentially suspicious activity.
“As a leading global soccer federation, one of AFA’s key objectives is to generate new revenue streams by unlocking the value of its digital assets through new strategic partnerships,” Claudio Tapia (pictured), president of the Argentine Football Association, said in a statement. “As part of this process, we are extending the reach of our brand across new markets and growing our corporate partnerships. Today, we are very happy to announce this strategic alliance with Genius Sports, a sports technology company that trusts in our association and vision and will help equip us for a digital future. We are convinced that this partnership will be critical to expanding the visibility of Argentine soccer across the world and opens up a range of new commercial possibilities.”
Mark Locke, CEO of Genius Sports, added, “The Argentine Football Association is one of the most respected and prestigious organizations in world soccer. Being selected by them for such a vital partnership that combines our expertise across live data, streaming, production and media is a huge honor and further validation of Genius Sports' outstanding credentials and strategy.”
Genius Sports works with more than 400 sports organizations globally, including many of the world’s largest leagues and federations such as the NFL, EPL, FIBA, NCAA, NASCAR, AFA and PGA.