SportUp 2.022, off to a fresh start!

7th Apr 2022

From the initial start of SportUp in 2018 until now, we have guided startups in establishing and further developing their business idea. For SportUp Boost, this concerns 60 startups who applied to our program. From these, we selected 23. For each edition of SportUp Boost, we offered several workshops on key topics including product-market fit, business modeling, digital marketing and basic financial planning.

The key question for the series of workshops is always: ‘Is there light at the end of the tunnel with this project? And in case yes, what are the best next steps?’

Almost half of these startups are still ‘alive and kicking’ with their business. We call that a success, especially because some of the startups entered SportUp Boost with ‘just a nice idea'. We would like to think that this is because of our very personal approach, the experience & knowhow we bring to the table, and the direct networking opportunities we offer to those entrepreneurs.

SportUp Start can be the next step for the startups who entered SportUp Boost first. Some ventures directly apply as well. This acceleration program consists of the imec.istart service offering for startups. Support for mid-stage startups that already have a proof-of-concept product and have international ambitions is offered, and we help them on top for all things related Sports Tech. In the last 3,5 years, there were 36 sports submissions for this program of which 9 were selected. From these startups, no less than 8 are still growing as we speak!

You can find all the selected startups from SportUp Boost & Start on our website here.



After every wave of SportUp Boost (2 times a year) we organize a meetup event, SportUp Meet. This is a moment for all the startups of the Boost & Start program to pitch their ventures to a critical audience from the local sports technology community. It’s a learning moment as well as a networking opportunity for the startups to get to know like-minded people and new potential partners, clients or investors. There’s always a keynote speaker invited as well who inspires all attendees with his or her ideas and insights on how technology is fitting into sports! We already organized 3 of those SportUp Meet events and 2 new ones are coming up very soon (see below)!

Pandemic style

Workshops, matchmaking, coaching, events,... they all were in person. However, we all know what happened then... and so, the last edition was an online one with quality videos from several experts followed by individual coaching moments.

For this years edition, we have chosen to do a hybrid version of the program. Every 2 weeks, the startups get access to videos about the next topic on the agenda. They can look at them and prepare for the coaching moments whenever they want. At the end of every 2 weeks, there’s a personal coaching moment planned. This happens in person or online, depending on the preferences of the startup. The intake meeting, the closure moment and the meetup will now be in person again. Hooray!

The boost from Sport Vlaanderen

What about the next steps in our adventures? Our regional sports government ‘Sport Vlaanderen’ expressed their continued support for what we our doing by confirming their financial and in-kind support for another 2+1 years.

We recently started with 2 new startups in our Boost program, 2 in the Start program and (as said) 2 new meetups on the agenda! We couldn’t be happier, especially after the 2 difficult Covid years. You clearly need 2 to tango.

Here’s a short summary of the startups currently active in the program:

MyPitch 👉 Discover your performance and that of pitchers with statistics! With a smart camera, MyPitch automatically records your performance on the field. Enter your number, play your match and check your stats on the app. Compare your successful passes, duels, distance covered and more stats with your friends and rise in the rankings every week. Proving your impact as a pitcher on a local soccer team is difficult. You can point to goals & assists, but those don't say everything. Pitchers deserve real stats that help them achieve their dreams. Interested? Make a visit to their website!

MyGamePlan 👉 MyGamePlan is a platform that wants to increase the probability to win your next game. They are the first opponent analysis tool for professional football clubs with a player app to prepare each player individually for their next opponent based on the framework of the coach in an automated but simple environment. The algorithm generates actionable yet customized insights out of complex football data for professional football teams and players. With the use of artificial intelligence they investigate patterns of the next opponent's style of play over a multi-season long data set. These patterns will be sent to the coaches' dashboard preparing the next game. Insights that are relevant to the team's custom style of play will be shared throughout the week, based on the team's training schedule, making it easily manageable and comprehensive. Go take a look at there website!

Hinged 👉 Your team's performance at your fingertips! Screen your team via their mobile application and receive the Hinged Report: a personalized, clear report for each team member. Gain insight into the weaknesses and strengths of the various players and train in a targeted manner. Hinged will soon be available for different sports teams and for personal trainers. Leave your email address on the website and they'll be the first to inform you!

Digital Padel Scoring System 👉 This team is developing a plug & play digital scoreboard for padel. The scoreboard will have an attractive design with sponsor visibility included. A web application will allow the club to communicate with its members through the scoreboard in a user-friendly way. More information will follow soon as this startup grows during SportUp Boost.

What's next? These are a few things we're working on:

1. We'll continue to improve our offering towards local sports startups & those interested in starting significant activity in the Flemish region
2. We'll be maturing our mentor network for our startups
3. We'll be building new national and international partnerships

In addition, we're discussing new services based on the challenges and needs from people working in federations, teams, etc.

Don’t miss out on our next events?!

Sports & HealthTech Meetup on April 19

The first in-person meetup organized in collaboration with the BlueHealth Innovation Center! Health and Sports go hand in hand. Also in the world of technology. But where do these interfaces lie and how do they reinforce each other? What can we learn from sports to help people live longer healthy lives?

Around this theme, we’re inviting you to De Krook in Ghent on Tuesday, April 19 from 6 PM for an evening full of insights and great people. We will listen to a number of motivated startups & experts. Then we'll let some fascinating speakers from the field loose on you in short 'talks about Sports & HealthTech'.



Register here. Make sure you read the event description, there you will find the registration link from eventbrite.

SportUp Meet on June 15

Are you ready for our next SportUp Meet?! During this event, you'll be inspired by new innovations in the sports world, a great keynote speaker and of course the exciting pitches by our SportUp entrepreneurs. You will also be informed about the whole set-up of SportUp and the program it provides for the startups to go from an idea to an internationally scalable business.

More information about the detailed program and the registration options soon! In the meantime, follow this meetup page to stay updated about ‘all things SportUp’!