Smart glasses have a lot of different groups up in arms. Privacy advocates are worried about the potential use of facial recognition. Courts are concerned about the potential for subverting the judicial process. Cruise ships are worried about glassholes. And now pro sports are also drawing a line.
As reported by The Indian Express, an advisory body for the Indian Premier League—the country’s most popular cricket league—has now expressly warned against the use of smart eyewear by both players and staff when they’re in “restricted match-day areas.” The gadgets, the board says, are prohibited by previous bans against communication devices in restricted areas, including the field.
The reason, it seems, has more to do with match-fixing/betting than players gaining a competitive advantage, with “a source” telling The Indian Express that the “latest crackdown underlines the league’s attempt to stay ahead of evolving integrity risks during one of world cricket’s most commercially significant tournaments.”
I, admittedly, have watched less than zero professional cricket in my life, but even without knowing how the sport works, I can see why the world’s biggest league would want to ban smart glasses. If a player, for example, were to want to throw a match based on betting lines in real time, it would be all too easy to communicate with an off-field bookie or some other liaison via a call or a text. And if people are bold enough to try and communicate in court that way (in front of a judge, no less), you can bet that any unscrupulous player wouldn’t hesitate.
Obviously, there are plenty of ways a player can still do that, but there’s no denying that a discreet comms device on your face just makes it all much easier.
And sure, cricket might not be a big thing in the U.S., but I wouldn’t be surprised if similar concerns bubble up in sports here, too. Major League Baseball (MLB) has a history of match-fixing and unsavory betting, and though its biggest scandals are well in the past, betting in sports by players is still a problem if a recent investigation by the FBI into pro basketball is any indication.
It’s impossible to say if other sports leagues will catch on and address the Ray-Bans in the room, but it seems smart glasses are on a collision course with just about everything these days, so, if I were a betting man, I’d wager that we’re going to see more pushback over smart glasses in the year to come.
