Watch: Body Cameras & Mics Capture Soccer Game In An Intimate New Light

Body cameras and microphones were strapped to players in a pre-season friendly match between Italy’s AC Milan and Germany’s FC Köln in a first for the soccer world. The end result was a FIFA-style inside look at what it’s really like on the field. 
  
The highlights of the match were uploaded to YouTube, and shots from the first-person POV were sprinkled throughout the video. Players captured through the lens of a GoPro-style camera give viewers up-close access to everything from pre-game handshakes to tackles and close-up shots of goals. 

In a case of life imitating art, the real-world visuals closely resemble FIFA game mechanics with the shaky camera angles as the player runs to the character’s hands, clapping or throwing a thumbs up.

After the pandemic prevented people from entering games, the microphones used to broadcast the games began to pick up on conversations the players were having on the field. For the first time, fans were able to see what the players were thinking and how decisions were made by the referee and officials. 
  
Going into the future, body cameras and microphones could provide fans with an entirely new way to experience the game by providing much-appreciated in-depth detail about how the game works. It also gives fans behind-the-scenes access to the sport’s finer details, even if it can be nauseating at times. 

[via Hypebeast and Kotaku, cover photo 161900645 © John Gomez | Dreamstime.com]