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Case Study: Custom Player Trading Cards for DataCoach x Boost on the Beach
Making Analytics Accessible Through a Format Everyone Already Knows
One of the biggest challenges in sports analytics is the gap between the data and the audience. Coaches and players get it and learn from it. But viewers sometimes struggle to interpret all the numbers and tables on the broadcast which causes them to lose interest. At Boost on the Beach, we wanted to find a format for fans that is easy to understand, engaging for broadcasters and familiar; trading cards.
The Event
Boost on the Beach is a collegiate Rocket League LAN tournament hosted by Syracuse University. With teams competing in person and a live broadcast running throughout the event, it was the perfect environment to bring player data to life in a way that felt engaging for everyone in the room, not just the analysts.
The Idea
We created custom digital player cards for every competitor at the event. Each card featured individual player ratings, key stats, and play-style identifiers all fed by our analytics platform; distilling hours of replay data into something you could read at a glance.
To take it further, we ran live digital pack openings on the broadcast. We called them BOOSTer packs. Safe to say it was a hit when every single team came back asking for their digital card.
The Production Process
Weeks before the event started we worked on a process with the broadcast in order to deliver real-time data into our broadcast graphics. Our goal was to create a pipeline that could turn replay data into engaging broadcast material as fast as possible.
We collaborated on branded content, set up media days with the players and prepared templates to be used where our data could be populated for the player cards. The card designs included branded elements like backgrounds, logos as well as the players profile shots posing from the event. We then added our table of statistics, radial performance graph and ranking in the tournament which would all be populated by their performance in the tournament.
The real success came in creating an automated process that populated the players' replay data into the cards. We were able analyze the replays, populate the cards and have them displayed on the broadcast the very next hour.
We created a graphic production pipeline that could feed the broadcast as data came in real time. Creating more engaging dialog and content for Boost on the Beach.
Broadcast of pack opening:
Why It Worked
The trading card format isn't new. It's familiar, nostalgic, and inherently shareable. By embedding complex analytics inside that format, we removed the learning curve entirely. You don't need to understand expected goals or boost efficiency to appreciate that a player is rated 87 in aerial control.
The format was the fun part, but the real value was the content. The player's data profiles were easy to read and understand with a quick glance. Each card is built from the same data coaches use to evaluate play-style tendencies, identify team chemistry on paper, and inform recruitment decisions.
What the Cards Unlocked
- Broadcast-ready assets that added a layer of storytelling and engagement to the live show
- Individual player profiles that are easy to share and understand at a glance
- A tangible, shareable deliverable that players actually wanted, which led to organic social engagement
- On-paper team chemistry breakdowns for coaches and analysts
- A recruitment-friendly format that lets programs evaluate players quickly
The Outcome
What started as a creative activation became one of the most talked-about elements of the event. The cards gave every stakeholder, players, coaches, fans, and broadcasters, something they could connect with. And because the content behind each card is grounded in real data, the value doesn't stop at entertainment.
"I am dead serious when I say all weekend the players asked about if they were getting (DataCoach) player cards"
- From an event organizer at a LAN the following weekend.
See the entire broadcast for pack openings here:
If you're running a tournament, league, or showcase and want to bring your players' data to life in a way that resonates with every audience, reach out here.
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