5 Sporting Predictions for 2016

Read More

The Future of Club Payments

Pitchero launches Stripe Connect Express and a Price Promise Guarantee.
Continue Reading
February 13, 2024
Back to Blog home

5 Sporting Predictions for 2016


With a particularly unprolific track record at predictions, I would be well advised to stay away from making any sort of bold forecast, but in true "new year, new me" fashion: here is an attempt to predict what might happen in sporting 2016.

keswick-flooded-again

It is impossible to look forward to any sort of grassroots sport in 2016 without acknowledging the devastation and destruction that adverse weather conditions brought to the latter part of 2015.

Sports clubs in and around, but not restricted to the north of the United Kingdom have been crippled by widespread flood damage. The worst of the weather did however bring out the best in community spirit, with people of all ages chipping in to help recovery efforts, with a few famous faces lending a hand along the way!

The turn of the year bringing an improvement in weather is by no means guaranteed, although some would argue that it couldn't get much worse.

keswick-flooded-again

Jamie Vardy's rise, not only to stardom, but an inevitable place in Roy Hodgson's Euro 2016 squad was one of the sporting stories of 2015, but can the footballing giants afford to keep on overlooking the non-league diamonds? In a word, yes.

The £5.1bn Premier League TV deal is only likely to encourage cash-rich clubs to fork out top brass for "talent" from the farthest depths of the world, especially on the back of the European Championships.

The rewards for taking a punt on a player from the lower leagues are vast. The potential of unearthing a Vardy, an Austin or a Smalling is important, but as finance from external sources increases, the need to buy cheap, groom and develop a player, then sell him on for premium prices declines.

But hey, at least we get to watch them on our local pitches!

keswick-flooded-again

The success of women's sport in Britain is being championed by some supremely talented and driven athletes, but can the work of Ennis-Hill, Armitstead, Simmonds et al, really drive participation levels through the roof?

Success at the Rio de Janiero Olympics would certainly help. A bronze for team GB at London 2012 inspired a 25% increase in women playing competitive hockey, with football and rugby seeing similar boosts, and funding from public and private bodies also aiding participation.

The FA (£3.7m), RFU (£4m) and ECB (£4m) have all made investments in the women's game, and Sport England have offered extensive funding. It is to be hoped that TV companies and sponsors can reciprocate this so that women's teams can join the world class individuals in the limelight.

keswick-flooded-again

It's not only the elite athletes that get access to high end broadcast equipment to document their sporting achievements. The incumbency of social media means that everybody is a journalist and games at all levels can obtain their moment in the public spotlight.

This trend is certain to grow in 2016, with Pitchero spearheading the effort to give grassroots clubs the power to broadcast their games to the world in real time. The Team Manager app allows match details to be updated live, so Auntie Kath in Cyprus can see that her young nephew Michael has scored his first goal for his team as soon as it happens!

Pitchero are also trialling a video camera that will enable clubs to film their games and upload key moments at the tap of a button. The equipment will record 30 seconds back from the press of the button and immediately load it to their club site to view within seconds, to give clubs that real Soccer Saturday feeling!

keswick-flooded-again

Finance, the single biggest challenge that grassroots sports organisations have to contend with. Costs for vital resources such as: all weather sports facilities, equipment, kit and insurance are ever increasing, leaving the participants to foot the bill.

Cuts to local authority budgets in 2015 resulted in soaring prices for usage of council pitches and facilities and the 2015 budget implementation of Insurance Premium Tax meaning the cost of running sports club continue to rise.

Sadly, this isn't a trend that is likely to be resolved in 2016. Tax incentives for community organisations would certainly ease the problems, however clubs are increasingly starting to look internally for a solution to rising prices.

Innovative schemes like easyfundraising are a unique way of doing this. If your club is registered with easyfundraising, each time a member buys online, they raise vital donations for the club completely free of charge.

Related Posts