The World Cup Is in Our Hearts

Abstract

Several days before the year 2023 commenced, the heart rate of many of us starkly surged. This was not due to a ruthless war or a deadly pandemic, but rather the outcome of a different type of emotionally charged event – the FIFA World Cup final match between Argentina and France. The World Cup is a major cultural event around the globe, which attracts attention from hundreds of millions of viewers, and not only from soccer fans. Here, we demonstrate how heart-related measurements recorded by smartwatches can be used to objectively quantify the level of engagement of various groups during the final match event.

Keywords: World Cup, Heart Rate, Heart Rate Variability