Ochy and Juventus Forward: How AI Biomechanics Is Reshaping Elite Performance

In sports technology, evolution is rarely linear. The story of Ochy’s journey from running retail to global football is proof that the right bet, on athletes’ movement and real, usable data, can fundamentally shift the landscape.

For stakeholders in Australia’s football, performance and tech sectors, Ochy’s rapid rise in 2025 and its recent partnering with Juventus FC in 2026 is a window into where athlete monitoring and retail technology are headed.

Scaling Insights: Ochy’s Breakout Year

Over the past year, Ochy has infiltrated key segments in the running industry, carving a presence at Paris, London, Berlin, and Frankfurt marathons, and finding its tech preferred by a spectrum of runners, coaches, retailers, and medical professionals. Through strong showings at VivaTech, CES, ISPO, and the Running Industry Alliance Summit, Ochy’s team grew as fast as its presence, validating the bet that running, like every sport rooted in movement, deserves better, more actionable biomechanical insight.

This wasn’t a single-shot innovation. In 2025, feature launches mattered. Back-view analysis unlocked new clinical insight into pelvis control and knee alignment, bringing science to runners during shoes-on demos at expos and in-store. The proprietary Shoe Recommendation Engine reimagined fitting: translating gait data into smart recommendations reduced guesswork for both runners and retailers, giving shops the power to offer data-backed advice. Ochy’s admin panel and shoe model management brought scalable control, inventory mapping and data tracking to retailers, sealing the loop between analysis, product, and the consumer experience.

From Demo App to Connected Ecosystem

The future shift will be a seamless blend between product and infrastructure. With a connected Web App, Ochy finally became an ecosystem: retailers, brands, and performance clinics could seamlessly move from mobile gait analysis to web-based management.

By the numbers, the results were compelling. More than 85,000 analyses in 2025, an average of 102 customers assessed each month per running shop, and runners using the system on themselves three times every thirty days. Side-view analysis remained the most popular tool; user feedback drove a sharper brand and clearer message. Partnerships with HOKA, Runners Need, England Athletics, and more signalled that Ochy’s core premise had strong industry buy-in.

A Mission That Became Personal and Global

Ochy’s founding story still resonates through its technology. CEO and co-founder Khaldon Evans’s injuries as a college athlete underpinned the platform’s core belief: movement science should not be reserved for elite labs or expensive research centres. Real prevention and performance require objective insight, and lack of access shouldn’t compromise health or career progression. This message- that running form matters, moved from blog posts and marathon expos into retail, and now, with its deal in Turin, across the football pitch.

AI in Motion: The Partnership with Juventus

The leap into elite football began at Allianz Stadium in February 2026, as Ochy was named an official partner within the Juventus Forward innovation initiative. Chosen from dozens of startups, being part of Juventus’ Forward Squad marks not just commercial success, but institutional validation: a professional club, renowned for its vision and resources, was betting on AI-powered markerless biomechanics.

For Ochy, the transition is logical. Football is the ultimate application for running science, it’s a sport defined by repetitive sprints, high-load pivoting, changes of direction, and cumulative stress over long seasons. Movement mechanics drive output and underpin injury prevention.

With Ochy, footballers and staff access lab-quality analysis using only a camera. The system translates match or training videos into insights about gait efficiency, asymmetry, and injury risk, all powered by proprietary AI. What was confined to the running shop or the track now becomes central to decisions about player rehab, boot selection, and long-term load monitoring.

Why This Partnership Matters for Football and Beyond

Juventus’ choice to integrate startups like Ochy demonstrates tech’s new role at elite clubs: not just for post-game data but for all-year-round management. The pitch is now the laboratory, and decisions in coaching, physio, and even retail reflect biomechanical data.

For Australia, there are direct implications. NPL and A-League clubs, currently facing constraints in resources and analytics staffing, can benefit from democratised biomechanics. Markerless solutions such as Ochy’s break the dependency on wearables, making high-quality insight available during regular training on public grounds. In Australia’s multicultural, injury-prone football ecosystem, AI-powered, multilingual, and field-tested technology stands to drive better player outcomes, sharper recruitment, and improved return-to-play protocols.

A Retail Revolution for Sport

Ochy’s shoe recommendation engine and admin tools make specialist retail a central part of the performance loop. By tying gait analysis to in-store inventory, Ochy ensures that runners and footballers alike get the shoe, support, and advice that fit their actual, measured movement.

The partnership with adidas via the adiClub program introduced Ochy’s insights to loyalty customers worldwide, proving that biomechanics is as relevant to the mass market as it is to the professional clinic. By allowing adiClub members access to Ochy’s analysis with redeemed points, the company blurred lines between community, data, and product.

If AI is to be trusted as the next frontier for sport, Ochy’s work in 2025 and its expansion into elite football in 2026 represent the standard. The transition from running to football is not just logical; it was inevitable, and every stakeholder in Australian sport should pay attention to what comes next.

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Brisbane Roar partners with PlanPay for 2026/27

TWELVE months ago, as the 2025/26 A-League Men’s season kicked off, Brisbane Roar’s active supporter group surged back to life.

‘The Den’ – as they’re known – had been a famous feature of the Roar’s Championship-winning glory years. Now heavily re-populated by a younger wave of supporters, their enthusiasm through early-season results against Macarthur, Melbourne City and Newcastle made them, momentarily, the talk of the A-League.

The Roar’s administration understand what a crucial role their supporters play in the health of the club – be they the new generation at the front of The Den, or the loyalists who have ridden the ups and downs of their 21 A-League seasons.

So, they have partnered with Australian-founded company PlanPay, to soften the financial barriers and increase fiscal flexibility for those wanting to cheer on the Roar’s men’s and women’s sides, helping to get them in the stands as early as possible.

‘Membership is the most important thing we offer, but given the current cost of living crisis, it’s also the hardest ask at the moment,’ Roar’s Head of Public Relations and Communications, Joseph Esposito, told Soccerscene.

‘When you’re targeting families of four, or youngsters, a full membership can be a big hit in one go. It’s important to be realistic, so having an option like PlanPay lets members spread that cost over time with no interest and no credit check.’

‘It also means we can get people to commit to membership earlier, to come on board and be part of something. It works on both ends, allowing us to offer an earlier price point for potential members – and most importantly, we’re not asking them to spend beyond their means.’

One of PlanPay’s key advantages is its ability to align payment schedules with how Australians actually earn their income.

According to Australian Bureau of Statistics payroll data from March 2024, approximately 86% of Australian employees are paid weekly or fortnightly, with 33% receiving weekly wages and 53% paid fortnightly. In comparison, just 12% are paid monthly.

Despite this, many traditional membership payment options are structured around upfront or monthly payments, which don’t necessarily align with household cash flow.

By offering weekly, fortnightly or monthly instalments, PlanPay allows Roar supporters to choose a payment schedule that suits their payday and household budget, making football memberships more manageable without relying on credit, interest or debt.

The partnership is also timely in a local sense; the ABS has also found sports participation costs in Brisbane rose 9.6% in the year to June 2025. Furthermore, as of March 2026, 41% of Australians had used a BNPL service in the past six months (Finder).

‘From our end, it’s essentially a bit like a modern layby. You choose your membership, pay a small deposit, and then pay the rest in instalments on the schedule that suits the individual,’ said Esposito.

‘Once the first payment is made your membership is fully active. We have previously had monthly payments to ease the pinch, but opening it up to have fortnightly or weekly options, more often makes it a whole lot easier to have people in.’

PlanPay was founded in Sydney in 2022 as a digitised lay-by for travel, and has since moved into ticketing, sports, and live events alongside expansion into the US and UK.

The company is now based in Charlotte, North Carolina, while maintaining its engineering, customer support and onboarding presence in Australia. PlanPay continues to partner with merchants globally to bring another way to pay, to more fans, Brian Learst, Chairman of PlanPay said:

‘We are thrilled to help Brisbane Roar FC lower the total cost of attending their matches by providing fans with debt-free, interest-free flexible payment plans.’

‘PlanPay allows fans to purchase the best seats early and customise their payment size and timing.’


Both the Roar’s men’s and women’s side present as fascinating prospects this season.

Newly-appointed women’s manager Johnathan Clemente is the youngest manager in A-Leagues history, with his charges looking to better last season’s impressive semi-final finish.

Meanwhile, the men’s outfit kicked off their second season under Michael Valkanis on Friday at Suncorp Stadium with an impressive win over Perth Glory, and will again rely on the energy and passion of those in the stands to drive their success both on and off the field.

‘Our fans are not just the present, but the future. In that regard, it’s not about getting them to spend beyond their means; it’s about allowing them to get in earlier, and in an easier way,’ continued Esposito.

‘Lots of younger fans are students, or they’re early in their working lives. Being realistic about it, paying a full season membership can sometimes be a real barrier, especially if they’re living out of home, paying rent for the first time.

‘Having PlanPay allows them to have the option that isn’t acquiring interest or debt, makes it easier for them to budget, and most importantly allows them to do what they do, without spending beyond their means.’

Make Membership More Accessible for Your Fans — Talk to PlanPay

Borussia Dortmund & Vodafone launch ‘Fan Mode’ to keep supporter attention on the pitch

Borussia Dortmund have launched ‘Fan Mode’, a new initiative aimed to incentivise supporters to put their phones away and live in the moment while supporting their side at home matches.

Dortmund have paired with club sponsor Vodafone, with the program in use from Saturday’s 1-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Under the initiative, fans can activate ‘Fan Mode’ within the Borussia Dortmund app – in a manner similar to flight mode – before locking their phone as the action kicks off. From there, time spent inactive on their phone during play equates to points, which in turn sees fans in the running for prizes – including autographed jerseys and fan shop gift cards.

‘With Vodaphone, we have a partner who not only understands what technology is capable of, but also when it should take a back seat,’ said Dortmund CEO Carsten Cramer.

‘Here, a global technology company is specifically using its innovative strength to protect the experience that no technology can replace.

‘Fan Mode sends a powerful message. Over 81,000 people in the stadium, singing, cheering, and holding their breath together: this here and now is irreplaceable.’

The move comes following a 2023 survey conducted by Vodafone themselves, which showed 63 percent of general football fans regularly use their smartphones during matches but simultaneously, listed an increase in social media, selfies and streaming at the football as an annoyance.

‘Anyone at a soccer game should experience the moment and the emotions – not just a cell phone screen,’ said Marcel de Groot, CEO of Vodafone Germany.

‘Let’s leave our smartphones in our pockets more often at the stadium and instead focus on what’s happening on the field and in the stands.’

Partaking in the initiative is completely voluntary, as is the claiming of any points or prizes.

Dortmund, managed by Niko Kovac and currently second on the Bundesliga table, led the Bundesliga’s average attendance for season 2025/26 with just under 80,000.

Their ‘Yellow Wall’ – the supporters in the Südtribüne, or South End of Westfalenstadion (known commercially as Signal Iduna Park) – are widely considered among one of the iconic sights of global football fandom.

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