AI in sports: Cambridge United partners with Genie AI for player signings

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is quietly progressing from a futuristic concept to a daily necessity. Whether it’s recommending your next playlist or writing emails, AI has become an essential part of everyday life. In recent years, there has been plenty of debate about how AI might replace certain jobs. But in an interesting twist coming from the sports world, particularly football, we are now seeing AI step into a very different role of player contract management.

In a first-of-its-kind move, Cambridge United FC has decided to use AI to draft and review contracts for players, employees and commercial agreements. The club believes this will help them save valuable time and money, especially with several signings planned before the September 1 transfer deadline. They have partnered with Cambridge-based company Genie AI to make the process faster, more efficient and less expensive.

While AI has previously been used in football for performance analysis, Cambridge United says this is the first time it’s being used specifically for managing contracts from start to finish.

"There's a growing conversation about AI in Cambridge, in football and across the legal world. Partnering with a homegrown innovator like Genie AI keeps us at the forefront. If we can keep the same legal quality while saving serious time and money, that's exactly the kind of smart decision that lets us reinvest in players, facilities and our matchday experience community." Club chief executive Alex Tunbridge was quoted as saying to the BBC.

The AI technology will be introduced this month and is expected to significantly cut down on legal expenditure. It, in turn, could allow the club to send more resources into player recruitment and improving the fan experience.

Rafie Faruq, co‑founder and CEO of Genie AI, shared his excitement: "Growing up in Cambridge, it's an absolute pleasure to help the club sign their players in line with regulations through the use of AI."