Norweigan side Hamkam FC Seconds have become the first football team to give full managerial reign to an AI manager, even if its time in charge wasn’t very long. With real time data interpreting, AI took over entire responsibility of the squad deciding all tactical and personnel decisions.
With a national side that haven’t qualified for a major tournament since 2000, Norway is starting to think outside the box on how they can look to move forward in the future. Hamkam and Eidsiva believe this way forward is AI. Entrusting their entire seconds team into the hands, or should I say wires, of a computer, Hamkam are leading the way in experimental football.
The AI manager took over a big game against local rivals. With fans already hesitant about the new appointment, the 6-1 loss was the last nail in the coffin. After starting with a 4-5-1 formation and going 1-0 up, things quickly fell apart with questionable tactics being used by the new manager. Goalkeeper taking throw-ins and a 1-0-9 formation was not what the fans wanted to see when suffering a heavy defeat.
This experiment was backed and aided by team sponsor Eidsiva, a tech and energy company, who used their top technology to create this manager. Martin Hoff Pederson, Senior Communications Advisor at Eidsiva, said “it was both interesting and reassuring to have our hypothesis confirmed: technology works best when it plays on the same team as people. This project shows that technology on its own doesn’t cut it, especially in such a human-centered role. The human manager should be back in charge now – and rightly so.”
“Football and tech are moving fast – and many teams focus on datasets and Moneyball. We wanted to see what would happen if we went all the way” says Mehran Ansari, Hamkam’s general manager. “We were almost impressed by how quickly the players brought into the idea – even if things escalated a little during the match…”
Although AI use is rapidly increasing, I’m sure Ståle Solbakken's job is safe… for now.
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