ProZone: football’s data revolution

In the 1990s, businessman Ramm Mylavaganam created a new way to analyse football matches, which would change how managers and coaches saw the game forever.

Whilst trying to sell some high-end massage chairs to Derby County, he found their assistant manager Steve McClaren watching hours of footage of opponents, trying to gain an advantage.

This gave him an idea – filming every minute of a match and then analysing the footage could be something football clubs want to invest in.

His idea would revolutionise the way football clubs looked at data, players and opponents. He’s been speaking to Tim O’Callaghan.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive and testimony. Sporting Witness is for those fascinated by sporting history. We take you to the events that have shaped the sports world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes, you become a fan in the stands as we take you back in time to examine memorable victories and agonising defeats from all over the world. You’ll hear from people who have achieved sporting immortality, or those who were there as incredible sporting moments unfolded.

Recent episodes explore the forgotten football Women’s World Cup, the plasterer who fought a boxing legend, international football’s biggest ever beating and the man who swam the Amazon river. We look at the lives of some of the most famous F1 drivers, tennis players and athletes as well as people who’ve had ground-breaking impact in their chosen sporting field, including: the most decorated Paralympian, the woman who was the number 1 squash player in the world for nine years, and the first figure skater to wear a hijab. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the tennis player who escaped the Nazis, how a man finally beat a horse in a race, and how the FIFA computer game was created.

(Photo: ProZone analysing a game between Reading and Manchester United. Credit: ProZone/Ramm Mylvaganam)