The VEO Vault by Alex Cordero
Above is a link ot our #GrassrootsSuperhero Dick Redmond and his company Superior Racking & Shelving who help us deliver our content to you.
The VEO Vault is a blog page which hopes to collect and share information about the various technologies that are flooding grassroots football.
It is based on my own personal experience with 3 VEOs supplied by Mark Gibbons of Walsh Gibbons to Home Farm Football Club.
I have also learned a huge deal using VEOs to capture games from Futsal, 5 v 5, 7 v 7, 9 v 9 and full 11 a side as well as training sessions, squad gifs and other content generating activities. I have learned also how not to use VEO and when a decent smartphone can suffice. I have learned how to best use the technology we have or is available to us coaches in order to get the most out of a teams football journey. We all know it is the journey of their lives… and our lives too!
In my role within Striker Online I have also helped many coaches and clubs better understand the technology available and the pitfalls and opportunities that exist. There is virtually no point in holding all this information in my head. I feel that coaches out there need someone who they can direct questions at or seek help as to how best use the VEO or other tech for;
1) Game Analysis
2) Game content sharing to public
3) Team Sponsorship and Fundraising
4) Player development
5) Tournament Management
If I don’t have the answers I will make it my business to find out and progress things for you. I hope that the VEO Vault helps deliver the right technology solutions to coaches and clubs.
I am also keen to show coaches and clubs how in many cases a VEO is overkill. Depending on what a coach/club wants to achieve there are other less expensive alternatives. I have used the widescreen option on a decent smartphone to capture entire games and even broadcast them live. There are meny tips and tricks here I want to share.
Phones are geetting better and better and cheaper and cheaper too! Get this, the phones below are from the Samsung S20 and S21 range. Both available SIM Free and unlocked from mintplus.ie They are a one off cost and if you want you don’t even need a sim. If you want to go cheaper get a refurbished Huawei P Smart which will set you back on €200. the point here is that the ultra wide cameras on our mobiles allow us to capture games and generate the type of content that we can work with. to achieve our objectives.
Of course if you want to use a mobile phone then keep an eye on the next blog post as the key for genearting content that can be used properly is to have the phone in a stationary position. Don’t hold it in your hand at eye level. Get a gooseneck bracket or a tripod or find a tree - get a clear view of the whole pitch or half the pitch and let the wide angle camera do the work. If you need help just call or email me alex@strikeronline.ie or 0868445908. The mobile phone option if done right is all you need from a sponsorship perspective.
Personally I don’t see the value or return from pursuing live broadcasting, not at grassroots level. However, I am a serious proponent of capturing, curating and sharing content that connects sponsors to teams and their communities. That allows content to be shared around the cummunity that builds up around each league. I will add however that its eaiser to use Facebook Live and Youtbe Live etc with a Mobile Phone than it is to deliver live on other solutions. When I say easier, I mean in terms of cost and hassle.
The above video is a sample from footage of a Futsal game in Gormanston. Footage can be curated and prepared for different Social Media platforms - getting the content is the hard part - after that its just editing and sharing. The Veo Vault can help!
Every team that emerges out of an academy or comes together under a coach is effectively a new product. It has a life cycle. As a coach myself I know that a team can stay together for years. It is arguably the greatest and most memorable journey of their lives, for both player and parent. Many coaches have 2, 3 or even more of these wonderful team life cycles during their own coaching career. Others stop when their child stops. Content and storytelling like this can also help keep teams together and even ensure we all behave a bit better when the camera is on ;-)
Today, in 2023, we all have the ability to capture this journey and if done properly can help fund the team's journey through commercializing the content through sponsorship and fundraising.
Another example of putting together something from the content for the benefit of the players, team and the club.
Clubs all around the country have invested heavily in VEO and other technologies. And each of them is having the same issues:
1) Monthly Software costs leading to 10 times the hardware costs over 5 years
2) Equipment safety from breaking and misuse
3) Resource allocation and low low level of game and content capture
4) Content sitting on the shelf never edited or used other than a few internal views
5) Lack of skills to ensure a return on investment
6) Inadequate set-up to house the cameras, recharging and uploading to maximize camera usage.
7) Social Media channels and options to grow club profile and sponsorship opportunities
Progressive teams and their cash strapped clubs are doing their best. Volunteers are working hard to develop the children under their care. Parents commit huge amounts of time and cash to supporting their child’s football journey…
Technology is now here to not only fund this journey, but immortalize it.
What would I give to see my All Ireland Final 2-1 loss against the famous Paddy Hilliard Home Farm 1973 team, and the Troy Cup loss against the same team in Tolka Park the year before. What would I pay to watch mysefl play those games today? to show my own kids.
These big games are now captured by professional companies but as technology becomes more affordable and accessible for all clubs, we are now able to capture and store games played by all their teams. These wonderful years can be captured, stored and curated. The content is of genuine value to a club. It lies there waiting for it to have value added.
Imagine, giving your child his own season or schoolchild career player reel, footage of them playing football when they were 10 or 15. This is all now available to parents, players, coaches and clubs and the content can generate funds through sponsorship and fundraising. Clubs can add logos and adverst to content and create agreements with sponsors. All the sponsor wants is exposure through decent quality content. The clubs can generate so much content and it will one day be of some value. Player Reels, Goal of the Month, Hat-Trick-Kings, Save of the Year, Bloopers… all these can be created and they are super attractiive to sponsors. Sponsors have been used to adding their logo to a shirt that only comes out of a bag once a week… not any more.
This is an example of a Squad Gif. Players get photos and video with a green screen and content of all sorts can be added to the back. Sponsors love this and the content can be added to a Squad Site or even used for fundraising.
All it requires is a bit of collaboration. A single source of truth and for clubs to learn to deploy the technology to achieve their goals. A trusted place where content can be curated to the benefit of Grassroots Football. Where clubs can connect with local or national sponosors who are now confident of the quality and consistency. At the VEO Vault we will provide the sponsors with their own content to share on the newer social media channels. This is very attractive to them.
This is my goal - to help all clubs and coaches learn how to get the most out the tech that is now in their clubs or the clubs are thinking of investing in. And to remind coaches and parents that depending on the teams objective even a decent smartphone, well located can capture all the content you need to connect with local businesses who want to show their support through sponsorship and fundraising.
To give you and example, any team out there can turn any content they capture into a search for a #GrassrootsSuperhero. At Striker Online we can access the content on any VEO anywhere and we can also use good quality footage capture on a mobile phone. We have the skills and expertise to help you.
As part of our VEO Vault Launch this month I have partnered with Mintplus.ie and Superior Racking & Shelving. I want to create a Goal of the Month for #GOMFeb23, #GOMJan23, #GOMDec22, #GOMNov22, #GOMOct22 and #GOMSep22.
A sample of what can be done with just a few clips sent into the VEO Vault
This is to help clubs realise that there is content there doing nothing and there are social media channels crying out for content. There are companies looking for affordable “User Generated Content” so that they can piggyback and get their brand and message out there.
If clubs, coaches and players compete on the pitch and collaborate off it - everyone wins! I belive a well managed team, playing good football and capturing 2 games per month can generate 5,000 to 10,000 per year in sponsorship. The key to it is what you do with the content - there are so many options and that is what the VEO Vault is about - helping progressive coaches fund their teams.
The facts are that only 20% of coaches will generate 80% of the content and 20% of them will generate 80% of the sponsrship revenue. That’s pareto efficiency and it’s a natuiral law - so theres no point in trying to convince everyone. Each club can run with those that are motivated and willing and have already built up their social media channels. These coaches are able to connect with other coaches through the VEO Vault and realise that there is zero point in two Veos or cameras at the same game. Capture two games instead. The opportunities from collabortaing and curationg content through the VEO Vault are endless.
Feel free to call me on 00353868445908 or email alex@alexcordero.ie
