Outstanding technologies at Euro 2016

Goal-lines, anti-drone technology or some health-tracking devices could feature at the biggest Euro in history.

There are just days left before Europe’s biggest football festival kicks off in France. While the rules of the game have remained largely unchanged since 1863, the technology that powers it has improved. In terms of technology, football is approaching the likes of tennis, NFL and cricket.

Whether technology makes the game more exciting or not is up for debate, but one thing is certain, the worlds of technology and football are merging. Euro 2016 will prove it.

Here are some notable technologies at Euro 2016.

Anti-drone technology

Drones have caused chaos at major football matches, most notably the chaos that followed a qualifying match between Albania and neighbours Serbia in May 2014. To prevent similar or even more serious incidents, French authorities have announced that they will take a number of measures to combat drones.

No-fly zones will be set up over all training grounds and stadiums. Details of the measures have not been released, but Euro 2016 security chief Ziad Khoury said they will be able to take control of any drones that enter the no-fly zone.

Khoury sees the task as a major one, given the rapid advancements in drone technology. In April, Euro security conducted a drill that simulated the neutralization of drones carrying chemical agents.

Goal line

Goal-line technology has been used in many tournaments such as the Premier League or Bundesliga. It also officially appeared at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Before the tournament took place, people considered using one of two technologies, including GoalControl (used by FIFA 2 years ago) and Hawk-Eye (widely used in tennis, rugby and cricket).

In the end, UEFA chose Hawk-Eye - a product of Basingstoke. This technology is likely to be used in next year's Champions League. Goal-line helps determine exactly whether the ball has crossed the goal line or not in situations where the referee on the field may not have seen it in time.

Virtual Reality

Virtual reality is the trend of 2016. Virtual reality devices and games are becoming more and more popular. This year's Euro will also witness the appearance of virtual reality devices.

The Nokia OZO camera was tested at this year's Champions League final. The Finnish company said it will use the virtual reality camera to live stream some of the Euro matches. All of England's matches, as well as some of Wales, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland's, will be filmed in 360-degree format.

Of course, this technology won't be available to households anytime soon, because each Nokia OZO with 8 lenses and 8 microphones costs up to 61,000 USD.

Health monitoring device

Two years ago, World Cup winners Germany used Adidas' miCoach to track everything from speed, heart rate, and distance covered during training. Just two years after wearable fitness trackers entered the football world, they have become commonplace. For example, this year's Premier League champions Leicester City use the OptimumEye S5 Catapult Sport. Experts speculate that this is the main reason why their players suffered the least injuries of any team in the Premier League last season.

Wearable devices are seen as an indispensable element, accompanying combat sports such as rugby. It allows coaches to evaluate, predict player performance and warn of possible injuries.

In France, these devices will certainly be more widely available than ever.

According to zing