Survey: Sports fans enthusiastic about AI in live games
April 22, 2025
As audiences are becoming more comfortable watching sports on streaming platforms, programmers are enthusiastic about using AI to streamline content creation and distribution, reports Hub Research. However, when it comes to live games, sports fans are protective of their viewing experience.
Plenty of ideas have looked promising on paper – the FoxTrax hockey puck, ESPN’s 3D sports channel, and Wimbledon colour commentary from IBM’s Watson – but have failed to engage fans, or even worse, sparked backlash.
In Hub’s latest Evolution of Sports sports survey, sports fans were asked several questions about Prime Vision, the AI-enhanced interface available as an alternate feed on Prime Video’s Thursday Night NFL games in the US. Viewers who choose the alternate feed see an enhanced view of the field with on-screen graphic overlays of player stats and insights happening in real time.
Key findings include:
Many fans who watched Thursday Night Football tried the new features.
· 57 per cent of NFL fans with Prime Video said they had noticed at least one of the Prime Vision features during the game.
The results were overwhelmingly positive.
· 70 per cent of the fans who saw Prime Vision were positive about the features.
· 26 per cent “loved” them and said it made the game more exciting and immersive.
· Only 6 per cent didn’t like Prime Vision.
Fans who are positive about Prime Vision are also more excited about sports becoming widely available on streaming.
Among those who said they “liked” or “loved” the Prime Vision experience:
· 82 per cent said they were excited for more sports content to become available on streaming services (compared to 56 per cent of all sports fans).
· 80 per cent said they like it when streaming services that don’t typically offer sports, add sports content (compared to 54 per cent of all respondents).
· 76 per cent said that if the same game were available on both streaming and cable, they’d choose to watch on a streaming platform.
“These findings underscore that new tech won’t engage consumers, just because it’s new,” commented Jon Giegengack, Hub’s founder and one of the study authors. “Many ‘enhancements’ in the past haven’t added value, or worse, have gotten in the way of the experience. But Prime Vision appears to elegantly thread the needle, improving the experience for fans who choose to use it and instilling confidence in fans about Prime as a ‘home’ for sports content in the future.”
The survey was conducted among 3,753 US sports fans ages 13-74. Interviews were conducted in December 2024.
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