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Happy Easter and happy Sunday. For those of you who indulge in eggs of the chocolate variety at this time of year, now's the chance to put them down, give yourself a break and read about some top-quality sporting visualisations. I myself have a stack of the Easter Bunny's gifts to get through and you should consider yourself fortunate that my insatiable appetite for chocolate means we dive straight into the content this week and not have to read through my sporting observations.
We kick off this week with football of the Bundesliga variety with this insight from Ansgar Wolsing into how teams have faired against Bayern Munich. Ansgar cleverly draws attention to yesterday's 'Der Klassiker' between Munich and Dortmund with the visitors emerging victorious in what is their first win in Munich in 10 years. That defeat for Munich, coupled with Bayer Leverkusans victory has all but ensured Harry Kane will spend another season trophyless. Great work, Ansgar!
For us football fans, why do we get so excited when our team is awarded a corner? Very rarely does a goal result, often they fail to 'beat the first man' can very often be considered catching practice for the opposition goalkeeper or worse still, lead to a devastating counterattack. Well, this viz from Ben Norland might just shed some light. He has produced a great heat map of the Qatar World Cup semi-finalists highlighting the distributions of the corners that were taken. Taking it short, looking for the near post flick-on or delivering to the back post for the central defender to power home a header? Check out this viz to see which teams favour each approach.
One of the elements I most love about a sporting match is the sense of pure theatre that can surround an epic encounter. Thrilling matches that twist and turn feel like they flash by in the blink of an eye but at the same time last a lifetime with so many moments to look back and reflect on. One such match occurred in 2021 when the Bristol Bears played Harlequins in Rugby Union. 28 points down after 30 minutes and then...well I'll let Rob Taylor fill in the blanks with the timeline of the astonishing match.
The summer feels like it's closing in fast and with it brings a wonderful array of sport. There are the regulars: Wimbledon, the British GP, FA Cup final to name but a few. This year, however, we are spoilt with not one but two grand events: the Euro 2024 championships in Germany and the Paris Olympics. The success of the GB team over the last 15 years or so has made for some truly unforgettable moments. Arguably, over that period of time, our most successful event has been cycling. To celebrate these achievements, team-mate Mo Wotten has pulled together this expertly crafted design which shows some interesting comparisons between World Championship results (usually the year before the Olympics) and Olympic medals. Often it is said that an athlete needs to peak at the right point and it would appear that if the Olympics are to be considered 'the peak' the GB team get it right more often than not.
For those Michigan Wolverine fans out there, especially those heading to San Diego for the Tableau Conference in April, check out Bo McCready's exceptional work, and offer, below! These prints are fantastic and I especially love the videos Bo shares when making these, and the T-Shirts. Great stuff, Bo!
Finally, for those of you who read Mo's fabulous round-up last week, you might recall him sharing a Strava UpSet plot from our very own CJ Mayes. Well, this week you get to read some of CJ's design and build tips for this very viz. Check it out!
OK, now you can open the egg that's been staring at you since you began reading. Enjoy and have a great week!
Simon & the #SportsVizSunday team