Case $2\mathrm{.}1$ The Toronto Raptors and Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment Enhance the Fan Experience

The Toronto Raptors made history in $2019$ by winning the NBA Finals, making it the first time a Canadian team wins the NBA championship.

While the Raptors plan for their future championships, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment $($MLSE$),$ the parent company that owns the Toronto Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto FC$,$ and Toronto Argonauts, sees digital innovation as an integral part of the organization. One of the areas of dit transformation at MLSE is the development and improvement of apps. A recent example is the Scotiabank Arena app, which allows game goe food and beverages ahead of time without having to wait in line. Also, when the arena is used for some major music concert, spectators can p $p$ merchandise, pick it up from a designated location, and wear it for the entire concert without having to wait and miss the opening songs. Mor capabilities are in the works as the MLSE digital team updates them every two weeks, and similar apps are planned down the line for addition venues such as the BMO Field, home of the Toronto FC and Argos CFL games.

Another example of digital innovation with apps are the recent partnerships of MLSE with Uber, MCDonalds, and Pizza Pizza. For example, dur playoffs with the Raptors, if you had ordered through Uber Eats, you might have also received a free Raptors swag pack. And if the Raptors shr than $12$ three$-$pointers, fans could have used the McDonalds' app for free food the next day. If the team scored $100$ points in a game, Pizza Piz offer a free slice if you buy one the day after. All of these required that you had the Raptors' app installed on your smartphone. This digital par works for all organizations, as they wanted to promote their apps, and MSLE wanted to promote the Raptors.

Assernbling a winning team requires getting the right players. Advanced analytics and data presentation technologies also help MSLE make thr decisions about players. With professional athletes making millions in annual salaries, teams need to make the right hiring decisinns to ensure both on and off the court, ice, diamond, or field. Making wrong player decisions can cause a team owner's bank account to go from the black $1$ the blink of an eye. For example, the Raptors developed an information systern consisting of several wall$-$sized screens and touchscreen tables specially prepared room the team calls the "War Room." The system is known as Sports Insights Central and makes use of several of I$8$Mrs fami artificial inteligence $($

www$.$ibm.com$/$watson$)$ functionalities. The Watson Tradeoff analytics function can assemble possible "dream tearn" player combinations. Watson Personality Insights gives management a better understanding of a player's personality and how he might fit with other mervibers and the tearn culture. AlchemyAPI mines news databases for intelligence on players of interest. The software can also crunch a player athietic and financial performance to see what impact he might have on a team on and off the court. Sports Insights Central has a phone app s management can have their own mobile version of the War Room.