2025 AVCA Presentation - The Romo Effect
Video, slides, and resources
Here are my video and my slides from “The Romo Effect”. The video is about an hour long so I don’t think it will show up in the email. You can go to the web version of this to see it. It was recorded with my iPad but it picks up the sound well enough until the AVCA posts their video.
Please reach out with questions, thoughts, opinions, etcetera. I’m always open to hearing from you.
I talk about fans coming to volleyball through connections rather than from channel surfing. I think the television networks have data that supports a healthy amount of casual viewers but I do believe we’re missing what volleyball fans care about as well as how the game actually works.
I want to reiterate that this presentation isn’t intended to call out broadcasters. It’s a call for change in the systems that support those broadcasters. It’s a call to action for fans to deepen their connection to the game.
For the most part, the stats I discuss could be calculated and displayed using data that is already being collected by college SIDs using NCAA Live Stats. Getting them would require some changes to their software as well as changes to the packaging of that data by Stat Broadcast and others.
The posts appeal to me as a Volleyball Coach. You identify things that might make watching the game more enjoyable.
Having spent yesterday watching the Super Bowl I have conflicting reactions. One is that while there are a lot of players and coaches, I wonder how many of the rabid football fans understand the game at the same level that the volleyball stats and metrics reflect? I am thinking - Not Many. There is some illusion of knowing the game but most fans watch the ball and follow the numbers that Tony shows them. The stats and heat maps appeal to coaches and create an illusion but are not the reason the sport is such fan favorite. In a real sense the Team is more important than the Game!
Second thought - Football made a huge jump in last few years largely due to Online Gambling and Fantasy Leagues. Drawing in new wallets who arent fans of a local franchise. Suddenly millions follow the games intently - often without caring which team wins! The stats etc and visibility of data comparisons drive this train. So the kind of info you identify could well propel Volleyball viewership - if the same interest in betting drives interest in the numbers.
Last - and a place VB has an advantage - NFL has just about sucked every dollar out of the USA market and needs to grow the game internationally. I suspect the rise of Flag Football as an Olympic sport is part of a Grow the game strategy. Our game is already well established globally so we are better postured to leverage interest.
Volleyball needs to borrow from baseball with graphics. Put a tracer graphic up to show the path of a serve. Put velocities up for serves and attacks. Use tech like Balltime to show height of attacks.
All of these things would highlight the incredible athleticism of the players.