5-POINT FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28th, 2020

This article was originally published on February 28th, 2020.

Here is this week's dose of “5-Point Friday”. A weekly round-up of the sports news and stories that I find most interesting and enjoyable.

Sports Technology I am excited for -

Second Spectrum is partnering with the MLS as the league’s first advanced tracking data provider. The company, which already works with the NBA and the English Premier League, has installed its optical tracking system in every MLS venue and will analyze player and ball movement for every game of the multi-year agreement. Beginning with the 2020 season openers this weekend, fans will see automated, augmented highlight videos on MLS digital properties.

Women's soccer news I am following -

Players on the USWNT are seeking nearly $67 million in damages in their ongoing gender discrimination lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation. The way the USWNT’s legal team arrived at that number is by taking the U.S. men’s national team's CBA and applying it to the performance of players on the USWNT.

Sports betting news I am interested in seeing -

The Spanish government has revealed its plans for cutting gambling advertising by 80% but is stopping short of a blanket ban that would have a deeper impact on revenue streams in LaLiga and the county’s other professional sports leagues. TV and radio advertising by gambling companies will be banned until 8 pm, impacting around 50% of matches in La Liga, Spain’s top soccer league, while online betting advertising will only be permitted between 1 am and 5 am. Sports team partnerships with bookmakers have not been banned, ensuring that 19 of La Liga’s clubs that have such deals in place will not lose out on revenue. That will come as further relief to the eight that have principal partnerships with betting firms. However, children’s replica kits will not be able to carry advertising for gambling brands.

World health news -

The coronavirus is starting to impact a number of different sporting events across the world, with the Six Nations the latest tournament to be affected. Ireland's men's and women's Six Nations games against Italy in Dublin on 7 and 8 March have been postponed because of the outbreak. Postponed matches would mean the Six Nations is forced into at least one extra week, or fixtures could have to be played considerably later. In 2001 one match was played in September and two in October owing to the disruption caused by the spread of foot and mouth disease. Five Serie A matches will also be played behind closed doors this weekend, including Juventus' match at home to Inter Milan. While there are also major concerns about the Tokyo Olympics, with a senior member of the IOC saying an outright cancellation of the Games, rather than postponement or relocation, would be likely if the disease proved too dangerous for the event, which is scheduled to start on 24 July, to go ahead.

Youth sports news I am interested in -

Children aged 11 and under will no longer be taught to head the ball during soccer training in England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. This follows the University of Glasgow study, published in October last year, that found that former professional soccer players were three times more likely to die of degenerative brain disease, and five times more likely to die from Parkinson's disease. Have a wonderful weekend, all!

Jonathan