As the World Cup draws near, Apple has announced that Siri, its personal digital assistant, is adding support for football (it’s “football” in most of the world, but Americans know it as “soccer”) in Brazil, Russia, Denmark, Finland, Malaysia, Turkey, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Israel. This is in addition to 26 other countries that already support Siri sports.
According to Apple, you can ask Siri questions like:
- When does France play Australia?
- What teams are in group A?
- Who is on the England squad?
- Who won the Argentina-Iceland match?
The 2018 FIFA World Cup will be the 21st FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament contested by the men’s national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It will take place in June 14 to July 15. Throughout the month, the App Store editors will highlight their favorite apps and games from football stars, offer tips on taking a perfect football photo, and how to best get your football fix on social media. The App Store will also feature key football-related apps and games to help fans dive deeper into the experience, with broadcaster apps like FOX NOW or BBC Sport, and games like FIFA Mobile and PES 2018.
Users of the Apple TV App on the iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV will be able to keep track of the World Cup action on FOX NOW in the US; and TSN and RDS, Bell Media’s English and French-language apps in Canada. Fans can favorite teams and follow their matches in Up Next, and receive notifications on their Apple devices when their team is playing or a game is close.
Apple’s News app will provide up-to-date scores and schedules, a knockout bracket, and profiles of the event’s key players from Eight by Eight magazine. Apple Music will feature playlists for each of the 32 participating nations with the most exciting artists in each country as chosen by local teams.
Apple Podcasts will feature an editorial collection entitled “The Beautiful Game,” where users can check out shows like Jetty’s “Game of our Lives” and Gimlet’s “We Came to Win” that talk about the drama off the football field, as well as traditional, established sports podcasts like “Men in Blazers.”
The editorial collection on iBooks will also be called “The Beautiful Game” and highlight the rich culture behind football’s biggest spectacle — celebrating legendary underdogs, national heroes and nail-biting finishes all captured in memoirs, bios and nonfiction.
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