Training Ground Guru | Sunderland Lead Data Scientist leaves for Ludonautics

Young also joined from Deloitte, in March 2021, but left in October 2023 to join Gemini Sport Analytics. Now Sunderland do not directly employ any analytics staff on the football side. Instead, their analytics function has been sub-contracted to Newcastle-based Seriös Group.

The partnership with Seriös was first announced in 2022, with the club stating that the company was “collaborating with the Black Cats’ internal data analytics team to create a bespoke player performance and recruitment platform, capable of analysing teams, games, players, and to identify new talent.”

The platform allowed the club “to make rapid evidence-based decisions when preparing for games by providing detailed insights into players’ capabilities using a range of performance, sports science, and medical data.”