NFL 1st and Future
The 5th annual NFL 1st and Future competition, in collaboration with the University of Miami, will take place at the Miami Beach Convention Center on January 31, 2020, two days before Super Bowl LIV.

1st and Future is the NFL's annual Super Bowl competition designed to spur innovation in player health, safety and performance. This year's event will feature two categories of competition:

NFL 1st and Future Analytics Competition: Applicants will have access to NFL data sets to examine the effects that playing on synthetic turf versus natural turf can have on player movements and the factors that may contribute to lower extremity injuries. This challenge will utilize the data science platform Kaggle. Up to three of the best submissions will be awarded $25,000 each. The winning teams will be invited to present their submission in Miami, where they will compete to win two Super Bowl tickets.

Innovations to Advance Athlete Health and Safety Competition: Submissions for innovations that could improve player health and safety, including but not limited to: protective equipment, medical devices, sensors and training devices. Up to four start-ups will be selected as finalists and will have the chance to present their innovations on stage in Miami. One grand prize winner will be awarded $50,000 and two tickets to Super Bowl LIV. The second-place winner will receive $25,000 and two tickets to Super Bowl LIV.

Please click HERE to see the official rules and eligibility requirements.

History
2019 Winners
Full Video
Punt Analytics Competition
Applicants were given access to exclusive NFL data sets to inform creative submissions about rule changes designed to reduce player injury during punt plays. Winners were Alex Wainger (New York, NY) and Halla Yang (Wilmette, IL).
Innovations Winner
TopSpin: Their TopSpin360 is the first patented training device proven to dynamically strengthen the neck to help reduce concussion risk.
Innovations Runner-up
SOLIUS: Their advanced science uses nano-spectrums of light to stimulate the production of critical hormones and peptides as a better way to reduce injuries, speed recovery, and improve the performance of athletes.
2018 Winners
Full Video
Advancements in Protective Equipment
Impressio, Inc: Impressio utilizes liquid-crystal elastomers (LCEs) to create novel dissipative liner materials for protective equipment designed to overcome the existing challenges of energy absorption in current helmet foams.
New Therapies to Speed Recovery
RecoverX: Element is a connected device that can achieve the optimum cold or hot therapy temperatures without any ice or water, designed to allow users more freedom for their therapy.
Technology to Improve Athletic Performance
Curv.ai: Curv is an athlete development platform that leverages patent-pending computer vision and augmented reality to transform the camera on any mobile device into a versatile tool that captures human motion, measures athletic abilities and evaluates injury risk.
2017 Winners
Full Video
Communicating with the Athlete
GoRout: GoRout has created on-field wearable technology to help streamline the communication between football coaches and players by allowing players to receive digital play diagrams and data from coaches on the sideline.
Training the Athlete
Mobile Virtual Player: Mobile Virtual Player (MVP) is an innovative, patented training platform that allows coaches to teach and train players effectively while significantly reducing the risk of injury from player-to-player contact. MVP brings a highly-mobile, remote controlled, self-righting 'virtual player' onto the field to revolutionize football training.
Materials to Protect the Athlete
Windpact: Windpact is a safety technology company that has developed a patented padding system that uses air and foam to absorb and disperse impact energy to improve the performance of helmets and protective gear. Driven by a team of engineers, designers and developers and led by a Pro Bowl NFL veteran, Windpact has begun integrating its flagship Crash Cloud technology into partner helmets and aims to further advance player health and safety through its scientific approach to product development.
2016 Winners
Full Video
The Future Stadium
Hyp3r: HYP3R makes it easy for businesses to engage influential customers at specific locations on a personal level in real-time.
Bring Home the Game
LiveLike: LiveLike uses Virtual Reality to bring you and your friends together in a sports viewing experience that's as easy as turning on your TV and as thrilling as going to the stadium.
Tomorrow's Athlete
Kenzen: Kenzen delivers real-time health insights using patented biosensors, sweat analysis and predictive analytics. Our mission is to predict and preempt injury and health complications.