Business

Newry firm STATSports continues global expansion

Manchester United is one of the many sporting teams that uses STATSports
Manchester United is one of the many sporting teams that uses STATSports Manchester United is one of the many sporting teams that uses STATSports

A NEWRY-based sports analytics company that counts Manchester United as well as the Irish rugby and football teams as clients, has more than doubled its workforce over the past year as it continues on a path of international growth.

On the back of strong sales worldwide and an influx of new clients STATSports has grown its staff from 17 to 40 staff, resulting in relocation to new larger offices at Drumalane Mill in the city.

Founded in 2008 by Alan Clarke and Sean O’Connor, STATSports Group has changed the way sport is analysed, coached and viewed by combining cutting edge technology and sports science. Teams in English Premier League, La Liga, the NFL, NBA and other professional sporting leagues and national teams use STATSports’ performance trackers to gather and analyse real-time player and team data during training and games to help them improve performance, strategy and reduce injuries.

Emerging as the world’s leading provider of GPS player tracking and analysis solutions the Newry company has linked with some of the biggest sports brands in world including Manchester United, the English FA and Nike.

Closer to home it counts the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) , Football Association of Ireland (FAI), the Irish Football Association as clients, while both Dublin and Mayo utilised STATSports devices on their way to this year’s All-Ireland Final.

Additionally the company has recently signed deals with European football sides Inter Milan, Athletic Bilbao, AS Monaco as well as the Scottish and Portuguese Football Associations.

STATSports’ exponential growth has coincided with the release of its third-generation system for elite sports teams. Touted as the most advanced performance monitoring and analysis system on the market, Apex is helping the firm make inroads on its competitors and add significant new clients to its global portfolio.

Managing director Jarlath Quinn said he is thrilled at the progress the company has made, as well as customers’ initial response to Apex.

“We are continuing to move in the right direction and are confident we have the right team in place to drive further growth over the coming years. We have ambitious plans for our technology and are putting the right team and resource in place to execute those plans.”

Even with some of the world's biggest sporting brands on board Mr Quinn believes there is still more to come with the company committed to continued research and development.

"We are further enhancing our Apex system with the development of mobile, tablet and smartwatch apps to make data even more accessible for coaches and managers ensuring peak performance can be attained."