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Similar to flying cars, being able to put yourself in the shoes of a professional athlete has always been one of those things I dreamed about when I envisioned the future. Instead, we’ve gotten artificial intelligence chatbots that are stealing peoples’ jobs.
When it comes to being able to immerse yourself in professional sports, though, it appears that we’re on the horizon of a new frontier, as Aston Villa midfielder Youri Tielemans wore a body camera while making his debut for the club in a preseason match against Newcastle United over the weekend.
While bodycams have been placed on referees before (although not in the Premier League), one being put on a Premier League and Belgian international midfielder for a video that’s being promoted by both the club and the league suggests that this is something the powers that be in the game of football are exploring.
This is amazing insight! 🤩
Watch Youri Tielemans' @AVFCOfficial debut from his point of view…#PLSummerSeries pic.twitter.com/rXzFv7kXjm
— Premier League (@premierleague) July 26, 2023
While its virtually impossible that this ever becomes the default method of watching football matches, it could certainly be something that’s presented as an added bonus, whether that be through the cable networks that host the games/highlights or through the various official in-house channels that most Premier League clubs have.
Let’s say you’re a huge fan of Liverpool and Egypt winger Mohamed Salah, for example — the ability to see what it’s like bagging goals from his point of view is certainly something that would be of interest to football fans around the world
In addition to Tielemans, who they got on a free transfer, Villa also signed 24-year-old winger Moussa Diaby in a $60 million deal with German side Bayer Leverkusen and Spanish centerback Pau Torres in a $36 million deal with La Liga club Villarreal.
Aston Villa — who finished seventh in the Premier League last year despite having to replace manager Steven Gerrard with Unai Emery about halfway through the season — will kick off their 2023-24 Premier League campaign on the road against Newcastle United at St. James’ Park.