Messi vs Ronaldo.....using VCA to determine who is actually better.

Messi or Ronaldo?  Who’s better? Can it be answered? Yes!

Many have asked the question above, and there has never been a common consensus.  Goals scored, number of assists or individual/ team trophies won do not always dictate the effectiveness of a player has on the game of soccer (football).  However, what if we said that there is a way to quantitatively answer this question, and without using goals scored?  Would you believe it?  Well you should, because the technology does exist.

So how does it work? 

There is company called Prozone Sports (www.prozonesports.com) that does exactly what we speak of. Prozone sports offers services that include post-match analysis, opposition analysis, player recruitment, live performance, referee, and research & consultancy.  It’s unbiased and nonobjective.   It makes transforms all of the elements of the game, including the ball and the players, into “data points” and then uses complex algorithms to analyze the data. 

Prozone sports uses 8-12 high-tech cameras positioned around the stadium to track players movements. Combined with complex software Prozone provides performance analysis based on physical, tactical, and technical components of each player.   Prozone’s products, which are several, are customizable and flexible so that it can fit to each coaches/teams preferences.

Here is a quick video of the technology Prozone Provides - Prozone Sports Ltd - PROZONE3.mpg

So who uses it?

Many of the top clubs around the world use this type of VCA.   These include Manchester United, Real Madrid, Arsenal, and multiple national teams (England and USA).

So who’s ACTUALLY better, Messi or Ronaldo?

We are not sure.  You are going to have to ask employees of Prozone if they have tried to compare the two.   We are just avid bystanders who are fascinated by the idea of combining technology and sports together, and then seeing the results.