Apple is going all-out for the 2018 World Cup tournament, announcing expanded support, coverage, and tournament-related content throughout multiple apps and services. In addition to the 26 other countries in which sports information is already generally available via Siri, users in Brazil, Russia, Denmark, Finland, Malaysia, Turkey, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Israel will also be able to ask Siri for scores, schedules, standings, and team rosters. The editorial team on the new App Store will also be highlighting the favorite apps and games of various football stars and posting other articles with tips for following the games, including key apps for following and watching the tournament.
Users in the U.S. and Canada can follow the action through the Sports feature in Apple’s TV App, and will even be able to favorite specific teams to follow their matches in the “Up Next” section and get notifications of when teams are playing or when games are close.
In addition, Apple is also adding a special section to the News app and service that will include scores, schedules, a knockout bracket and profiles of key players, Apple Music will add featured playlists for each of the 32 participating nations, with artists chosen by each local team.
Apple Podcasts is also featuring an editorial collection titled, “The Beautiful Game” that will collate football-related shows, and a similar editor collection on iBooks will feature titles that highlight the rich culture of the sport. Lastly, Apple is even adding new content to its Clips app that will allow users to create videos with football-themed graphics, stickers, labels, and posters.
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