AWS for M&E Blog
Bundesliga Match Fact: Match Momentum – Revealing the game’s invisible pulse
This blog post was co-authored by Luc Eluère, Data Scientist, Sported Solutions AG and Joshua Bär, Product Owner, Sportec Solutions AG.
In football, there are moments that define matches—periods when one team seizes control and the momentum shifts decisively in their favor. Picture the relentless attacking waves of Bayern München during their dominant phases, such as during the 2012-2013 campaign, or the suffocating pressure when a side pins its opponent in the final third. These surges create an intangible energy every fan can feel. Yet, until now, those moments have been difficult to quantify objectively.
So how do you capture this feeling and turn it into something you can see, understand, and talk about in real time? Developed by Sportec Solutions, in close collaboration with the Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL) and Amazon Web Services (AWS), we are introducing the new Bundesliga Match Facts (BMF): Match Momentum.
What is Match Momentum
Match Momentum is a live measure of attacking dominance that transforms the ebb and flow of a match into a clear, shareable story for millions of Bundesliga fans. Built on AWS infrastructure and designed with broadcasters and fans in mind, Match Momentum updates throughout the game play. It reveals when pressure is building, when control flips, and when a breakthrough feels imminent—bringing audiences closer to the action, while providing commentators and analysts with a richer narrative.
Figure 1: Match Momentum visualization as part of a broadcast stream.
How Match Momentum works
Match Momentum quantifies and visualizes the current goal threat and attacking dominance of teams during a match in real time. This advanced metric integrates multiple offensive actions into a single, intuitive measurement that shows which team is exerting more dominance, at any given moment.
The metric incorporates nine key offensive indicators:
- Entries into the attacking third – Teams pushing forward into dangerous areas
- Expected goals (xG) – Quality of scoring opportunities created
- Post-shot xG – Evaluation of shot quality after execution
- Goals – The ultimate attacking success
- Crosses into the box – Delivery of dangerous balls into scoring areas
- Receptions in the box – Receptions within the penalty area
- Corner kicks – Set-piece opportunities from attacking play
- Red cards – Outnumbering affecting attacking capability
- Fouls conceded in attacking third – Defensive disruption under pressure
Rather than only aggregating raw statistics, the system applies sophisticated data processing techniques to account for the temporal nature of football and the varying significance of actions across different match contexts. The following design principles represent the core methodological approaches that ensure Match Momentum delivers reliable and interpretable insights:
- Normalization: Indicators are normalized seasonally to allow fair comparison across matches and teams.
- Recency weighting: Recent actions contribute more; impact decays over short time windows to reflect how pressure ebbs and flows.
- Smoothing: Short‑term noise is filtered so the chart reflects interpretable phases rather than isolated spikes.
- Neutral baseline: A centered baseline (0 on a -10 to +10 scale) helps viewers read swings at a glance.
Together, these indicators and principles transform disparate offensive events into a cohesive, real-time narrative that accurately reflects the shifting balance of attacking control between teams.
The Match Momentum computational algorithm and its underlying weighting system have been carefully optimized through a collaborative process involving the football experts of Sportec Solutions. The extensive input enables a data-driven and objective selection of optimized parameters, free from bias or intuition-based assumptions. This is how Match Momentum can reflect real-game impact and aligns with the nuanced demands of football analysis.
The calculation uses a sliding five-minute window for each team. Every indicator contributes with a different weight derived from extensive historical analysis. Unlike traditional statistics that provide snapshot views, Match Momentum creates a continuous narrative of attacking dominance. Each action is normalized using seasonal data to verify a fair comparison, while smoothing algorithms reflect how game momentum actually builds. The system balances objective statistical dominance with perceived danger, capturing both sustained pressure and explosive game-changing moments.
Three perspectives combine to create the complete Match Momentum picture:
1 – Attacking threat for each team
Figure 2: Threats for VfB Stuttgart and Bayer 04 Leverkusen in their thrilling 3-4 match on March 16, 2025.
Key indicators are aggregated over the last five minutes, weighted by importance, and have a time-decay factor applied to emphasize recent actions. The indicators are then smoothed, with the result scaled from 0-10.
Attacking threats provides a real-time view, showing which team is posing more of a threat. Attacking patterns are represented in a consolidated, visual signal—helping reveal who’s really on top during intense game moments, beyond the actual score.
2 – Momentum
Figure 3: Match momentum of the VfB Stuttgart vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen match on March 16, 2025.
Momentum is calculated as the difference between the home and away attacking threats. Values above zero indicate the game momentum is with the home side; below zero means the away team is pushing harder.
Match Momentum captures the ebb and flow of a match. It’s that sense every fan knows: one side turning the screw—wave after wave of pressure. With Match Momentum it is now measurable. Commentators can call the shift as it happens and audiences can see the game tilt.
3 – Heat
Figure 4: Heat and momentum curve for the VfB Stuttgart and Bayer 04 Leverkusen match on March 16, 2025.
Heat is the sum of both teams’ attacking threats. It reflects the combined intensity of play and scales from 0-20.
Attacking threats don’t always tilt to one team. Sometimes it’s a full-throttle contest: both sides pushing forward, end-to-end, chance-for-chance. Heat flags wide-open sections where the tempo spikes and a goal feels inevitable. When momentum is close to zero but Heat rises, you’re watching a shoot-out in full flow. These are game moments for broadcasters to emphasize, while fans hold their breaths for their desired outcome.
Automated Match Momentum stories
To help transform raw values into engaging on-air narratives, Match Momentum stories are automatically detected and created in real time. These stories are indicators that highlight the shifts fans often feel, but may not immediately identify.
To highlight two different indicators:
- Goal against the run of play: When one side absorbs sustained attacking pressure but manages to score first—perhaps through a quick counter or a standout moment. The story indicator is flagged right away, offering commentators a chance to highlight the unexpected turn.
- Momentum flip: These are game-changing swings every fan feels—a visible shift in control marks the start of a new momentum story, and potentially a different outcome to the match. This indicator is now detected in real time.
These data-driven alerts feed directly into broadcast graphics and live tickers. It provides commentators and fans timely insights, that enhance the game play storylines, with Match Momentum providing visibility as it happens.
How it is implemented
The Match Momentum calculation runs on AWS cloud infrastructure and is powered by proprietary algorithms developed by Sportec Solutions. This new BMF builds on top of several existing Bundesliga Match Facts, such as Expected Goals, Keeper Efficiency, and Attacking Zones—all processed in real time on AWS, to create a new layer of insight.
The BMF framework processes real-time data through Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (Amazon MSK), enabling seamless integration of positional data streaming at 25 Hz alongside event data from the DFL DataHub. The Sportec Solutions Match Momentum calculation engine operates within a dedicated AWS Fargate container. It continuously processes incoming data throughout each match in real time.
Once calculated, Match Momentum values flow to multiple destinations: back to the DFL DataHub for broadcast consumption, and to Amazon MSK topics for other Match Facts integration. The values also pass through AWS Lambda functions to Amazon Aurora Serverless for storage and Amazon QuickSight for visualizations.
Figure 5: High-level architecture of BMF Match Momentum.
Match Momentum stories are implemented leveraging the Bundesliga Data Story Finder solution.
Summary
It is important for commentors and fans to know when game momentum changes. Therefore, we introduce the Bundesliga Match Facts: Match Momentum, a metric that captures the dynamic ebb and flow of attacking dominance during game play. Commentators and fans can understand what is happening in a game and how the balance of attacking pressure shifts between teams over time.
The Match Momentum metric represents the culmination of an extensive collaboration between football experts and data scientists. The algorithmic expertise of Sportec Solutions, developed through deep understanding of football dynamics, provides the foundation for accurate Match Momentum calculation. This technical innovation, combined with the football knowledge of DFL and the cloud infrastructure of AWS, creates a comprehensive solution that enhances the viewing experience for fans worldwide.
Match Momentum is now available during live broadcasts, where it enriches commentary through data-driven storytelling. It helps viewers understand the tactical shifts that influence match outcomes, while visual representations help to see game momentum shifts as they unfold. This new BMF metric will provide fresh perspectives on match analysis and deepen fans’ appreciation for the tactical nuances of Bundesliga football.
We’re eager to see what patterns and insights you discover with this new metric. Share your findings with us on X: @AWScloud, using the hashtag #BundesligaMatchFacts. To explore more innovations from the partnership between AWS and Bundesliga, visit Bundesliga on AWS. Or contact an AWS Representative to know how we can help accelerate your business.