Details

The 12th annual Hackathon at the 2025 Sloan Sports Analytics Conference will bring together innovative and analytical minds to create groundbreaking solutions in the sports industry. The competition is a tremendous way to meet industry experts and peers in the sports industry over the course of the conference. Check out the final presentations from the 2024 Hackathon on our YouTube page!

The Hackathon, Presented by Ticketmaster, will take place on Thursday, February 29th (i.e., the day before the official start of the Conference) starting at 9:00am ET. During the day, participants will be given a brief of the task and data set. Industry experts from Ticketmaster will provide mentorship throughout the event. The event culminates with participants presenting their work in a short presentation to a panel of distinguished judges.

A set of finalists will then be selected to present their ideas during the Conference on March 1-2 (exact time to be announced).

Applications for the 2024 Hackathon are now closed.

Theme Preview

Data is driving Live. Live sports, concerts, festivals, Broadway…everything! Each aspect of the experience starts with a single data point and hopefully leads to actionable insights that help author an amazing event. This year’s Hackathon, powered by Ticketmaster’s LiveAnalytics, puts you in the driver’s seat, mining data, guiding decision making, and bringing a truly unique recommendation to the table. LiveA’s anonymized dataset will be put into your hands to solve an incredible opportunity!

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the Hackathon?

The Hackathon will start at 9:00am ET and run most of the day on the Thursday before the conference (February 29th). Final presentations will occur during the Conference on March 1-2 (exact time to be announced).

When is the last day to apply?

All interested applicants must submit their application by January 28th at 11:59pm ET.

Who is eligible to participate in the Hackathon?

The Hackathon is open to everyone - both professionals and students (undergraduate, graduate, and PhD) are eligible to apply. We will have two separate competition pools, one for students and one for all other participants (i.e., the Open Pool). Students may choose to participate in the Open Pool if they so choose!

Are there any restrictions on what companies I can apply from for the Open track?

Any professional should feel free to apply!

Is the competition open to students of all levels?

Applicants currently enrolled in an undergraduate, graduate, or PhD program are eligible to apply.

Is the Hackathon an individual or team event?

All applicants must apply individually, but participants are welcome to collaborate in teams of two during the competition. Those selected for the Hackathon will be added to a group chat to facilitate finding team members prior to the Hackathon event on February 29th.

Do I need to buy a ticket to apply to the Hackathon?

You can submit a Hackathon application even if you do not have a conference ticket. If you are accepted, you will be expected to purchase a conference ticket in order to participate in the Hackathon. 

If I am selected for the Hackathon, do I need to buy a ticket to participate?

A conference ticket is required to participate in the Hackathon. If you are selected as a participant, you will have the opportunity to buy a ticket (if you have not already purchased a ticket). Students will be able to purchase a ticket at the Student rate, while Open track participants will be able to purchase a ticket at the General Admission rate. If you already paid for a ticket to SSAC24, there will be no additional fees to participate in the Hackathon.

When will I hear back if I have been selected as a participant in the Hackathon?

You will be notified of acceptance by February 2nd.

What will happen on the day of the competition?

On February 29th, participants will be provided with a brief problem statement. Participants will work on the problem during the day with the competition ending in the afternoon. If you are selected as a finalist, you will be invited to present during the Conference on March 1-2 (exact time to be announced).

How will the submissions be judged?

Submissions will be judged by industry leaders in the sports analytics space. The evaluation criteria will include creativity, functionality, originality, and innovativeness of submissions.

Previous Winners

2024
Student Division: Tejas Bala (Northwestern University) and Jackson Crawford (University of Southern California)

Open Division: Ben Jenkins (Paramount+) and Ethan Haas (West Monroe)
2023
Student Division: Xander Schwartz (Amherst College) and Lorenzo Dube (University of Texas at Austin)

Open Division: Lucas Moss (Learfield)
2022
Student Division: Charlie Logan (University of Michigan)

Open Division: Daniel Lee (Bayesian Statistician) and Fabrice Mulumba (Coalfire Systems)
2021
Student Division: Devlin Sullivan (Washington University in St. Louis)

Open Division: Michael Shealy (Cached Consulting LLC) and Mack Meyer (Better)
2020
Student Division: Arnav Prasad (University of Chicago), Nikhil Morar (Indiana University), Saiem Gilani (Georgia Tech), Erik Johnsson (Harvard University)

Open Division: Philip Maymin (Fairfield University)

2019
Gamification Layer: Chaitanya Bapat, Joseph Levy, Su Young Park (Georgia Tech)

User Experience Layer: Josiah Grimes (River Logic)
2018
Student Division: Jason Feldman (Davidson College)

Open Division: Zach Knowlton (Oracle)

2017
Student Division: Melanie Lewis (University of Oklahoma)

Open Division: Devin Pleuler (Toronto FC)

2016
Student Division: Ashutosh Nanda (Columbia University)

Open Division: Colin Davy (Slalom)

2015
Student Division: Shawn Farshchi (University of Michigan)

Open Division: Colin Davy (Slalom)

Application Form

Applications for the 2024 Hackathon are now closed.