Last week, FIFA held its annual monitoring system certification event (EPTS for its acronym in English -Electronic Performance Tracking System-) at the Nuevo Mirandilla stadium of Cádiz C.F. Companies from all over the world attended this event to obtain or renew their FIFA supplier license in each case. HUMANOX was present with its smart shin guards.
HUMANOX has been a member of the FIFA Innovation Programme since 2021. On this occasion, the company participated in the certification tests with the HUOX 50 shin guard system. It was the only IoT device present in the tests.
Our Director of Communication, Joaquín Martín, tells us about it in this video directly from the pitch of the Cádiz CF Stadium.
Humanox and the Clinica Universidad de Navarra have received the Ennova Health Award in the IOT, Ehealth and wearables category for their collaboration with the HUOX 50 smart shin guards. The award is given by Diario Médico of the Unidad Editorial group.
The award ceremony was held in Madrid and according to the same organization, the Ennova Health Awards were born to recognize digital initiatives that add value, contribute to the sustainability of the system and improve the quality of life of patients.
On behalf of the Clinica Universidad de Navarra, the award was collected by Enrique Cabrera, and on the side of Humanox, the award was collected by Javier Moreno, CEO of the company. In Moreno’s words “Receiving an award in the e-health category for smart shin guards is a confirmation of our vision to go further with this IOT product. And to share that award with a prestigious and first level organization such as the Clinica Universidad de Navarra is an honor that we are delighted with”.
The Clinica Universidad de Navarra and Humanox signed an agreement last May whereby the Hospital would use the anonymous data provided by the HUOX 50 for research and studies on the prevention of injuries at an early age, as well as the study of heart conditions.
FIFA has welcomed HUMANOX in the FIP Program (FIFA Innovation Programme) for new technologies. Compared to other devices that are non-organic additions to a player’s equipment, the HUOX 50 shin guards are the only regulatory element that is already part of a footballer’s kit and that also provides information on monitoring, performance, and health.
The fact that Humanox shin guards offer other data in addition to tracking the player’s position and speed, such as heart rate, number of shots, calories, heat map, kicking speed, etc., is aligned with FIFA’s interest in exploring new technologies such as Humanox, to adjust or open new certification processes in the future.
In the FIFA Innovation Programme, together with HUMANOX, the Sports Data Campus – Catholic University of Murcia participates as an evaluating entity that will issue a report, and Cádiz CF, which will be the club where the shin guards will be used in different categories within of the different sessions that will take place in the FIFA Programme.
Nicolas Evans, Head of Football Research and Standards at FIFA says “The objective of the Innovation Programme is to better understand the potential of new innovations, in particular in light of making them more widely available to the football world. As such, working with tech companies such as Humanox can allow us to demonstrate added value for the game at many levels”.
Nicolas Evans, Head of Football Research and Standards at FIFA
Javier Moreno, CEO of Humanox declares “The fact that FIFA has included us in its innovation and new technologies program is a stimulus to our work to continue bringing the latest advances to football. Being the only smart device in the world that is part of a player’s kit is a breakthrough in non-invasive technology for both boys and girls and professionals. “
Humanox smart shin guards have already won the UEFA Reimagine Football Award in 2020, among 298 projects from 34 countries. This solution is currently applied by both professional teams from La Liga and the Primera RFEF in their different categories, as well as academies and amateur clubs in Spain, USA, Italy, Mexico among other countries.
Humanox already participated at the event that FIFA held last September at the Sevilla F.C. within its Electronic Performance Test System (EPTS) event. As part of the collaboration, in October, the company was invited to attend the annual Congress of the FIFA Quality Programme (FQP) that took place at the organization’s headquarters in Zurich.
International expansion is a key element at Humanox. In 2021, we have opened subsidiaries in Great Britain and the United States, we closed agreements with youth soccer academies in US which give us presence in 11 North American states. There are players applying the smart shin guards in their trainings and games already in countries such as Mexico, Argentina, Italy, Japan, etc.
Now we go one step further and the Humanox App is now available in Italian, both on IoS and Android. This enables Italian teams and players to benefit from access to health and performance metrics in their own language in an easier way.
Currently it was already available in Spanish and English, to which this third language is added. The Humanox team is already working on the implementation of new languages, as the platform and the application are available worldwide. To our Italian fans we say Grazie!
Humanox continues its international expansion and this time opens a new market in Europe. The first team in Luxembourg using Humanox technology is the Mamer 32 F.C. The implementation of the HUOX Space platform, where the HX50 smart shin guards are integrated, has started with the first men’s team. From there, the Mamer 32 will extend the tool to other categories of the club. Specifically, the women’s team, which plays in the Luxembourg first division, and has won the league championship for five consecutive years.
The Mamer 32 F.C. is a team that will be 90 years old this season. It has almost 400 players distributed among 22 teams, and where the development of its grassroots players from 6 to 18 years old plays a fundamental role. Dean Léen, Vice President of the Mamer states “We are proud to be the first in Luxembourg to acquire a unique technology such as Humanox. We want to give the best to our players, both to the first teams and to the youth categories, and these smart shin guards can help us continue to evolve and win titles. “
Photo: Andjelko Makulin Left to right: Pedro Garcia, Joaquin Martin, Dean Léen, Vitor Pereira
Javier Moreno, co-CEO of Humanox, in reference to the international expansion of the company, says “We are pleased to work with the Mamer 32 F.C. as a customer. A serious club that applies technology in the care of its players. We are taking another step in Europe and entering a new market like Luxembourg, which in the last 20 years has bet heavily on youth football.” Luxembourg has 639,000 inhabitants and 39,000 federative licenses, that is, 6% of the population, which indicates the boom of football in this Central European country that occupies the first place in income per capita according to the IMF.
The Humanox team has been working with the technical staff of the Mamer 32 F.C. during the last months to support the implementation of the technology. Moreno completes, “Humanox has an international vocation from the beginning, and in the first part of 2021 we are executing our expansion plan successfully both in Europe and the US.”
As Pedro García, the club’s physical trainer, says, “We decided to work with the Humanox shin guards because we are very interested in knowing the individual and average physical load that the team can withstand.” Coach Vitor Pereira comments “Humanox data and metrics provide us with very valuable information both in training sessions and in games to get the best out of each player.”
Humanox entered the international scene 9 months ago when it won the UEFA Reimagine Football Award in October 2020, among 298 projects from 34 countries. From there, it opened subsidiaries in two of the most important markets in the world, Great Britain and the United States. In the latter, it has already signed 3 agreements to implant its smart shin guards in youth soccer academies in more than 12 states including Miami, New York, New Jersey, California, North Carolina, among others.
The presentation ceremony of Andalucía Fútbol Tech took place at the Confederation of Employers of Cádiz. This is the first Football and Technology cluster that integrates companies and institutions related to the world of sports and technology. Javier Sánchez, President of the CEC, Rafael Contreras, President of the Andalusia Fútbol Tech Cluster, Vice President of Cádiz C.F. and President of Humanox, Javier Moreno, co-CEO of Humanox, Julio Fariñas, CEO of Footters, José María Arrabal, Secretary General of Sports of the Junta de Andalucía, and Antonio Sanz, Deputy Minister of the Presidency of the Junta de Andalucía.
Javier Moreno, coCEO Humanox
Rafael Contreras, cofounder Humanox and President of the Cluster
Representatives of Humanox, Footters, CEC and Government of Andalucia
The Cluster was born with the main idea that football is a driver of economic, social, technological and educational improvement in Andalusia in the post-Covid phase. Some of the objectives and lines of work of Andalucía Fútbol Tech are the promotion of member companies to positions of world leadership in the sports and health fields, while contributing to the economic, social, technological, educational and health development and Andalusia innovation.
Javier Sánchez, President of the CEC comments: “Today we begin a path where Business and Football have much to contribute, and where digital transformation plays a fundamental role. From the CEC we are already working on that line. ” Rafael Contreras, President of the Andalucía Fútbol Tech cluster, specified “Andalucía Fútbol Tech as an association of companies and institutions and with its defined lines of work can play a fundamental role in the recovery in the post-covid period, and contribute to a recovery from different levels ”.
Julio Fariñas, CEO of Footters shares “As CEO of Footers, I know that entrepreneurship is not easy and from Andalucía Fútbol Tech we reach out to Andalusian entrepreneurs and startups to help the industrial development of this sector, taking advantage of accumulated experience.” Javier Moreno , coCEO of HUMANOX, comments “As a Cluster it is important to be able to add strengths between companies and institutions, gain competitive advantages as a sector, and place Andalusia and its technology at an international level. At Humanox we place an emphasis on health, as well as player development. “
José María Arrabal, Secretary General for Sports of the Junta de Andalucía “Today we are witnessing the birth of a denomination of origin that will mark sport in Andalusia in the coming decades. Entrepreneurship, economic development and football have many possibilities, and the cluster is a catalyst.” Antonio Sanz, Deputy Minister of the Presidency of the Junta de Andalucía completed “Andalucía Fútbol Tech is the seed of a project that combines modernity and new technologies in the postcovid phase. Linking football to the opportunity for growth and job creation at this time places us at the global technological forefront. With leading companies in the world, and made from Andalusia.”
The presence of leading companies in the sector such as Humanox and Footers, the first division club Cádiz CF, and the institutional support from the Confederation of Employers of Cádiz and the Junta de Andalucía, represent a solid beginning from which to continue building , adding and articulating the cluster throughout the Andalusian territory.
Humanox and ISL have signed an important agreement whereby the HX50 smart shin guards will be available to more than 10,000 boys and girls between 6 and 18 years old who play soccer, as a protective and technological element and will allow the monitoring of their performance and physical condition. ISL, an official partner of FC Barcelona, LaLiga and the American Futsal Federation (US Youth Futsal), among others, has been developing programs such as the Barca Academy, MIC USA or LaLiga Select in the United States for more than 8 years to promote development and the training of boys and girls between 6 and 18 years old.
The agency has a presence in more than 25 cities, and 10 states, including important capitals and centers of North American soccer such as San Francisco, San Diego, Boston, Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago, Orlando, Philadelphia or Seattle to name a few. Only California and Florida, accumulate the 14% of the 3 million registered youth players in the United States according to the US Youth Soccer Association.
With this agreement, Humanox consolidates its position in the United States by introducing the smart shin guards in more than 25 cities and 10 US states. Prior to this agreement and after opening a subsidiary in the US in March of this year, Humanox had already signed two other agreements with academies in Miami and in the states of New York and New Jersey, and currently has its own commercial staff deployed on both coasts.
Alex Isern, CEO of ISL states “The agreement with Humanox means putting the most advanced technology at the service of the health and performance of soccer boys and girls.” Iván Contreras, co-founder of Humanox, comments, “With this agreement, Humanox takes a decisive step of leadership in the US market, and confirms that our smart shin guards have become the benchmark technological tool to help children, parents, and coaching staff of grassroots football ”.
The HX50 smart shin guards, which received the UEFA Reimagine Football 2020 award among 298 projects from 34 countries, collect more than 250,000 raw data per game or training of each player. It is possible to know health and performance parameters of children such as heart rate, speed, distance traveled, striking force, among more than 40 parameters. Humanox technology makes this solution the only smart and connected shin guards in the world. They are a natural element of a player’s kit, not an add-on. And that makes it easy to use. In Spain, the two pioneering La Liga clubs in implementing this technology have been Cádiz C.F. and the C.A. Osasuna, who incorporated smart shin guards to all their youth soccer teams, as well as to the first team players; and in the First RFEF, Real Racing Club de Santander is the first to apply Humanox technology in the 2021-22 season.
Humanox continues to strengthen its board of directors and this time it incorporates a heavyweight in finance in the international arena. José María Vallejo, Global Tax Director of BBVA is the latest signing of the health and sports technology company, creator of the only smart and connected shin guards in the world.
In the last twenty years, José María Vallejo has held important positions in both the public and private sectors. He was Deputy General Manager for International Tax Affairs at the Ministry of Finance for two years, and between 2003 and 2007 he held the position of Finance Counselor at the Permanent Representation of Spain to the EU.
In the private sphere, in addition to being a director in different companies, he was a partner in the tax department of KPMG for two years, before joining the position of Global Tax Director of BBVA in July 2011, a position he has held ever since. In 2018, he was awarded by International Tax Review magazine as “Best Tax Director ‘in house’ in Europe”. His relationship with soccer and sports does not begin with Humanox, since the creation of the Social Council of Cádiz C.F. was recently announced. of which Vallejo is a member.
In recent months, Humanox has been strengthening its board of directors with the addition of high profiles such as lawyers and professors Juan Ignacio Peinado and María Jesús Guerrero, in the areas of governance and compliance, with a marked international character. The appointment of Vallejo as a new director is in line with the evolution of Humanox as a technology company in the last year and a half, and on the other hand reinforces the foundations for the growth of the company in the coming years. Rafael Contreras, co-founder and president, Iván Contreras, co-founder and co-CEO, and Javier Moreno, co-CEO of the company, were already on the board.
José María Vallejo, comments “Humanox has unique products and technologies, and an international vocation from the beginning. It motivates me to contribute with my experience in a technology company with a clear growth potential such as Humanox.” Vallejo joins the company as a proprietary director by being one of the main shareholders himself. The new director had already participated in previous companies of the main investors and co-founders. Javier Moreno, co-CEO of Humanox points out “Having a professional of the reputation and category of José María Vallejo in Humanox, is a guarantee and a reason for confidence both for the markets and for investors.”
Humanox is carrying out a capital increase of 4.9 million euros with a phase for small investors and another phase for professional investors. This expansion is intended for the international expansion of the company, which already has subsidiaries in Great Britain and the United States, and with agreements in the states of Florida, New York and New Jersey. His second product has just been presented at the Mobile World Congress, together with Telefonica, which is also part of the Humanox shareholders. The HUOX Cardio Patch, a connected device capable of performing an electrocardiogram in real time.
Humanox presented the HUOX cardio patch, capable of performing an electrocardiogram in real time for 24 uninterrupted hours, at the Mobile World Congress. At the stand that Telefónica has in the Mobile, Iván Contreras, co-founder and co-CEO of Humanox, and Joaquín Martín, Director of Communication, presented the HUOX cardio patch to the press and professionals of the sector, a small and lightweight connected device intended for monitoring heart rate of any person autonomously.
Without the need for cables, weighing just 10 grams and measuring 55 millimeters high and 4 millimeters thick, the HUOX cardio patch offers temperature, heart rate and an EKG in real time. It uses disposable electrodes and is connected to a dedicated app for this purpose. The patch is presented with the aim of serving as a reference in the prevention of cardiac injuries and as a tool for monitoring and routine check-ups. It is intended for anyone who wants or needs to control the functioning of their heart for personal or professional reasons.
Humanox uses IOT technology and Artificial Intelligence in its devices, in addition to the connectivity of Telefónica, which is part of Humanox through Wayra. Thanks to all this, the HUOX cardio patch will be able to alert when there is an unusual pattern in the user’s cardiac behavior. Monitoring can be done for 24 hours straight, and the device has a battery recharging box that serves as a protector.
The patch has the possibility of being used autonomously and at the same time connecting to other devices via bluetooth. Among others, with the HX50 smart shin guards, offering another dimension to the health data they offer. This allows that the information on the physical state of the user can be integrated or completed with other sources of information and monitoring can be carried out remotely.
According to the Spanish Heart Foundation, there are 30,000 cardiac sudden deaths a year, including among these figures 1,000 deaths in young people between 15 and 30 years of age with an athlete profile. Iván Contreras, co-founder and co-CEO of Humanox, comments: “With events such as the recent collapse of the player Ericksen, we see, more than ever, the need to provide unique solutions for health and the prevention of injuries of various kinds. Collaboration with Telefónica Tech and the benefits of IOT technology are very important in this mission. The possibility of carrying out an electrocardiogram in your own home or during a game or training is of great value ”.
Javier Moreno, co-CEO of Humanox, assures: “Humanox, with the HUOX Cardio patch continues to advance in its product diversification strategy in the M-Health sector and bringing health and sports technology closer to people’s day-to-day lives, not only we democratize data, also highly technological devices ”.
The HUOX cardio patch is Humanox’s second product after it launched the only smart shin guards in the world in 2020, the HX50. In Spain they are already used by teams such as C.A. Osasuna, Cádiz C.F., or Racing de Santander, and for their innovation they received the UEFA Reimagine Football Award among 298 projects from 34 countries. If the smart shin guards put high technology at the service of footballers to monitor their health and performance, the HUOX cardio patch is one more step, as it can be used integrated with the shin guards and offers an electrocardiogram of the footballer while playing.
The specialized magazine SportsPro has published its prestigious annual report in which HUMANOX is included among the top 20 emerging startups in the technology and sports sector where to invest in now.
HUMANOX is the only Spanish startup in the report thanks to the XPAD, which measure more than 50,000 raw data related to health and performance, and also thanks to the HUOX Space, the platform which collects these data and translates them into 40 metrics in real time. An innovative idea in the sports sector, specifically in the world of football since HUMANOX democratizes technology and put it at the service of grassroots football. Finally, HUMANOX wants to help not only the first division teams, but also those grassroots football teams so that players, coaches and even parents can access and monitor the sports life and health parameters of the player since its inception.
SportsPro, based in London, is the leading international media organization in the sports industry. It stands out for its monthly magazine in printed format with a circulation of 20,000 copies where it includes interviews, analyzes, related to the sports business. In addition, SportsPro organizes several annual events such as the well-known SportsPro Live, which this year will be in April, where leading sports experts meet to discuss the changes and challenges which the sports industry is facing today.
HUMANOX has been chosen as one of the 20 best emerging sports technology companies to invest in. This is the second annual report carried out by the media firm after analyzing multiple startups in the Sportech sector around the world. For this study, Sportspro has the collaboration and opinion of investors, executives, advisers and economists from the sports world such as Benjamin Penkert , (Founder SportsTechX), Benjamin Stoll (Director of Strategic Alliances and Innovation FIFA), Jean Baptiste Roy (Founding Partner Asia Sports Tech), Jean Baptiste Alliot (Advisor, UEFA Innovation Hub) Giel Kierkes (Head of Innovation of Dutch FA) . On the other hand, the companies selected this year stand out for innovative technological ideas related to applications that provide information to the public about sports equipment, specific applications to help the different teams improve their performance, as well as applications to entertain the user and that they interact.
It is a fact that the sports tech sector is booming. According to Juniper Research, specialist in providing data and research among which the mobile technology sector stands out, it considers wearables as a data opportunity and a new market. In this way, it confirms that currently in Spain, 64% of professional athletes already use body technology (wearable body sensors) in training and in the game. And, It estimates that it will reach 97% in 2023.
