11 hours ago
Bolton Wanderers end tie-up with sports data firm Ludonautics after two years
WANDERERS have ended their relationship with sports advisory firm Ludonautics.
The club has confirmed that the link-up, which was agreed two years ago to give them access to high-end scouting data, has been cut.
Advertisement
Ludonautics were given B class shares in Bolton's parent company, Football Ventures (Whites) limited, two years ago in exchange for access to data which they felt would help them improve recruitment, specifically overseas.
The parting of ways is understood to have been amicable, with Wanderers now shifting back to a more traditional blend of data and in-person scouting under new sporting director, Fergal Harkin.
A spokesperson for the club told The Bolton News: 'Our partnership with Ludonautics has ended. We are extremely grateful to Ian (Graham) and his team for their help and expertise on the specific projects we partnered on.'
Ludonautics was founded by former Liverpool director of research Ian Graham, who worked in Jurgen Klopp's data room alongside Michael Edwards to create a Premier League and Champions League winning squad between 2012 and 2023.
Advertisement
Graham was responsible for one of the Premier League's first in-house analytics departments, which paved the way for the data boom of the 2020s but the link with Bolton has not proved as productive as it was originally hoped.
Mr Graham said: 'Despite our professional partnership coming to an end, I wish BWFC nothing but success both now and in the future. It was a pleasure to work with and assist their progressive ownership and management team for the period we did."
