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  • August 2015 (Revised May 2017)
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TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics

By: Feng Zhu, Karim R. Lakhani, Sascha L. Schmidt and Kerry Herman
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:35
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Abstract

In 2015, Dietmar Hopp, owner of Germany's Bundesliga football team TSG Hoffenheim and co-founder of the global enterprise software company SAP, was considering how to ensure long-term sustainability and competitiveness for TSG Hoffenheim. While historically a small team from bottom rungs of the league, TSG Hoffenheim, with revenues of €60 million to €70 million, reached the top division of the Bundesliga in the 2008–2009 season thanks to a deliberate strategy focused on enhanced scouting, strong youth programs, and innovative technology and analytics that improved player development. In 2014 Hopp, who had personally invested €300 million in the club, built a "footbonaut," an automated training environment that collected data on players' skills and strengths. The tool, one of three in the world, helped scouts and coaches better assess and develop each player. Yet some managers felt the technology was a distraction, an investment too expensive for a team that was not yet cash-flow positive. The team finished the 2014–2015 season in eighth place, below the top division, and Hopp wondered whether the focus on technology and analytics was the right strategy to grow the club. He wondered if the "moneyball" approach—when a smaller team competed with wealthier teams by using statistical analysis to buy undervalued assets and sell overvalued assets—could work in football and if investments in technology could lead the team to financial independence.

Keywords

Information Technology; Measurement and Metrics; Sports; Sports Industry

Citation

Zhu, Feng, Karim R. Lakhani, Sascha L. Schmidt, and Kerry Herman. "TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics." Harvard Business School Case 616-010, August 2015. (Revised May 2017.)
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About The Authors

Feng Zhu

Technology and Operations Management
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Karim R. Lakhani

Technology and Operations Management
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Related Work

    • August 2015 (Revised May 2017)
    • Faculty Research

    TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics

    By: Feng Zhu, Karim R. Lakhani, Sascha L. Schmidt and Kerry Herman
    • October 2019
    • Faculty Research

    TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics (B)

    By: Feng Zhu, Sascha L. Schmidt, Karim R. Lakhani and Sebastian Koppers
    • December 2022
    • Faculty Research

    TSG Hoffenheim; Step by Step Analysis in Excel

    By: Feng Zhu, Karim R. Lakhani, Kerry Herman and Sascha L. Schmidt
    • November 2019
    • Faculty Research

    TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics (A) and (B)

    By: Feng Zhu, Sascha L. Schmidt, Karim R. Lakhani and Shirley Sun
Related Work
  • TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics By: Feng Zhu, Karim R. Lakhani, Sascha L. Schmidt and Kerry Herman
  • TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics (B) By: Feng Zhu, Sascha L. Schmidt, Karim R. Lakhani and Sebastian Koppers
  • TSG Hoffenheim; Step by Step Analysis in Excel By: Feng Zhu, Karim R. Lakhani, Kerry Herman and Sascha L. Schmidt
  • TSG Hoffenheim: Football in the Age of Analytics (A) and (B) By: Feng Zhu, Sascha L. Schmidt, Karim R. Lakhani and Shirley Sun
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