Personal drones are extremely popular right now. One issue though is that they are big, annoying, expensive. What they fail to anticipate, however, is that the latest drone technology will allow manufacturers to produce smaller, safer and quieter drones within the next couple of years. This new technology will open up new applications for commercial drones, one of which is sports coverage. A quick search on Google will reveal plenty of sports-related drone footage. Many videos are still a little choppy, but what matters is that they are there.

Drones will change the way we watch sports. The reason is simple. Drones are perfect action cameras. They are flexible, spontaneous and don’t have physical limitations. They can circle around a soccer field without any trouble, or follow a group of marathon runners along a winding road. They can also be deployed anywhere, whether it’s a sheer cliff face or open water. These features allow drones to be very effective at covering all kinds of sports events, from golf to dirt bike races.

Additionally, because of their maneuverability, drones can be used to cover sports events from multiple angles. Even the most basic types of drones can be maneuvered to provide the best view of a sports arena, a feature that many traditional cameras simply do not have.

The biggest goal of the sporting industry right now is to take the fans closer to the action, and drones are the ideal tool for this task. Consider the demand for live streaming sporting events. Drones reduce the cost and preparation for such events thanks to their maneuverability, and as we’ve mentioned before, they can be maneuvered around the field fairly fast.

Drones also offer new, innovative ways for sports entertainment companies to capture events. ESPN, for example, trialed drones at the X-Games back in 2015. Fox also used them at the AMA Supercross Series and at the Golf U.S. Open. So as far as practical applications go, drone-based sports entertainment already exists.

Additionally, more sophisticated drones have high-quality cameras that could be used for live television. Thanks to their light-weight cameras and real HD videos, they can be used to cover many sporting events. Although these high-quality drones are expensive for ordinary consumers, they do demonstrate that the technology is readily available and will only get better with time.