Will Spain or Argentina win the World Cup? This AI tool has its say

Generative AI is everywhere, whether it’s used as a cornerstone of a service, used to build apps, or employed to boost functionality within them. But with so many new products appearing all the time, which ones are worth checking out?

We’re here to help with a new regular series covering the best and freshest AI apps and services that you should know about.

Catch our previous edition of new AI apps and services here! 

Predicd uses AI to forecast the World Cup’s winners and losers

I’ve been watching the World Cup with my fiancée, who’s relatively new to football, and one of the first things she mentioned to me (after I had to explain the offside rule) was just how nerdy the sport actually is. If you look past the actual skill and athleticism on display, she’s completely right.

Naturally, with so much data accrued in the modern game on player positioning, team form, historical results, and tactical styles, one can make assumptions about practically any matchup. That’s what Predicd attempts.

I stumbled across this unique AI-powered tool while looking for wayward World Cup final predictions from various woodland creatures, but while nature certainly knows best in some instances, I think an AI tool using real numbers to predict match outcomes makes a little more sense.

As mentioned, Predicd uses historical data from past and present tournaments, head-to-head form, in-game performance indicators like xG (expected goals), and other related information to predict an end result. As a football fan, I absolutely love seeing how the stats correspond to the final score. And, surprisingly, Predicd got it right surprisingly often.

So, how accurate is it? While it didn’t quite nail the quarter-final scores, all the teams it predicted to win did go through. It did, however, miss three results in the round of 32 and four in the round of 16.

Perhaps further indication that sport is more than just numbers alone, Predicd got both semi-final results wildly wrong. It was predicted that Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe would meet in the final. Instead, they’re playing off for the bronze. Does this demonstrate how tactics cost France and England, or highlight Spain and Argentina’s resilience and craft? That’s for nerds and purists to argue about in the comments.

As for the World Cup winner, Predicd believes Spain will come out tops against Argentina.

Other new AI apps and services you should know!

There are plenty of other great new AI apps and services out there, including:

FootballGPT

Not sick of soccer just yet? Perhaps the World Cup has inspired your inner Ted Lasso. If you’re new to the sport and want to learn tactics, or coach a junior school team and teach them basic tactics, FootballGPT is a useful little tool.

As its name suggests, it provides a knowledge base for coaches to create drills, refine strategies, and implement them on the field. It can also create full coaching sessions covering all of the above, provide detailed animations of the player movements required to execute plans, and a dashboard for preparing against opponents prior to match day.

Sofascore

Finally, to round out this World Cup-themed edition of our AI apps and services series, I’ll highlight a feature in an app I use regularly to track scores across various sports, including soccer.

Sofascore is my pocket sports update app, which I use to track Formula 1, tennis, cricket, and rugby results. It also includes an AI breakdown and previews of soccer games that are easily overlooked.

This data includes pre-game info, such as a result probability matrix based on both teams’ scoring potential, and a detailed dive into relevant context for the matchup, including season stats, probable tactics, and even referee info. At halftime, it also provides insight based on the first half’s run of play.

Why is this info worth exploring? For one, it’s great for newcomers. If you have no idea why one team is winning and the other is struggling, Sofascore’s AI insights explain the tactics and tides at play. It also offers a few fun details, including predictions for the next scorer and winner.