Burnley FC Selects Three Startups for Inaugural Innovation Hub Cohort.

Roger Hampel

Image: Burnley FC

Burnley FC has selected three technology startups for the inaugural cohort of its newly established Innovation Hub, marking a formal step toward embedding early-stage innovation into the club’s operations and wider ownership ecosystem.

The selection follows a competitive application process that attracted more than 200 companies globally, with finalists pitching their solutions during a virtual Pitch Day hosted from Turf Moor. The judging panel included senior leadership from Burnley FC, representatives of ALK Capital, and external industry advisors.

From Pitch to Pilot: Six-Month Testing Phase Burnley FC

The three selected startups will enter a six-month pilot programme, working directly with Burnley FC to deploy and test their technologies in live club environments. The pilots are focused on:

• digital and multilingual content delivery

• integrated fan experience and engagement infrastructure

• matchday activations designed to generate new commercial inventory

Focus Areas: Content, Fan Data and Matchday Engagement

The first cohort spans a range of functional use cases:

• Camb.ai – AI-driven localisation infrastructure enabling real-time translation of content into more than 150 languages while preserving voice tone and identity

• Mantis XR – spatial technology connecting ticketing, merchandise, hospitality and engagement data into a unified fan experience layer

• Piing – large-scale interactive games designed to activate fans during matchday downtime and create sponsorship-ready engagement formats

Collectively, the solutions target areas where clubs increasingly seek scalable alternatives to fragmented vendor stacks.

Governance-Led Innovation Strategy

Burnley FC described the Innovation Hub as the foundation of a long-term, repeatable model for adopting and scaling emerging technologies. The structure is designed not only for single-club implementation, but also with potential application across the wider multi-club portfolio linked to Velocity Sports Partners.

Alan Pace, Chairman of Burnley FC, said:

“We received some excellent applicants, and the three selected will add value across the business. We’re looking forward to working with them over the next six months.”

Penelope Edmonds, Vice President of Corporate Development & Investments, added that the programme is intended to address practical challenges in football operations rather than serve as a branding exercise.