Watching a team you support play live at the stadium is probably the best thing any sports fan can wish for. Watching on the big screen, fair to say, second best. What about when you can’t watch the live stream because life gets in the way?
A scoreboard app is your best bet. Such apps allow fans to track the match's progress and see any updates, such as goals, penalties, player exchanges, and more.
Plus, some scoreboard apps have live streams, commentary, highlights, and fantasy sports features, too, and become a one-stop-shop for all things sports for fans who keep the score on their phones.
It’s high time to develop a scoreboard app that delights sports fans who want to stay in tune with their favorite athletes.
This article describes the scoreboard app's basic and advanced features, how to develop a scoreboard app step-by-step, and how much it costs to develop a scoreboard app like Apple Sports.
What Are the Basic Functions of a Scoreboard App?
A great scoreboard app starts with a solid feature set that caters to sports fans' needs. Predictably, it all starts with score tracking. But what else should be there? There are many more exciting features to add and make your scoreboard app a well-rounded sports experience.
In this section, we’ll break down the core and advanced functionalities that can make your scoreboard app a fan favorite.
Score tracking
At the heart of any scoreboard app lies its most fundamental feature — score tracking. Typically displayed on the home screen, this feature ensures users stay updated on the most popular or anticipated event scores — or those they’ve added to their favorites. Adding a widget for the smartphone's home screen is a fantastic idea, allowing users to check scores at a glance without opening the app.
The choice of sports and leagues depends on the app's target audience, regional preferences, and supported sports. For example, Apple Sports covers leagues like MLS, NBA, Premier League, LaLiga, and more.
To retrieve real-time match updates, your development team can integrate APIs such as SportMonks, API-Football, or CricAPI.
Favorite teams
Let users personalize their experience by adding their favorite teams. Once a team is marked as a favorite, its scores can be pinned to the top of the scoreboard or even included in a widget for quick access.
Notifications
Keep users engaged by offering customizable notifications. These can include reminders for game start times, final scores, or even real-time updates like goals, penalties, and halftime reports. Push notifications ensure fans never miss a moment of their favorite games.
Widgets
Widgets take convenience to the next level by allowing users to see scores of ongoing matches involving their favorite teams right from their smartphone's home screen — no need to unlock the phone or open the app.
Settings and user profile
A settings section is essential for tailoring the app to individual preferences. Users can manage their notification preferences, select app languages, and even add payment methods for premium features or remove in-app ads. A user profile helps centralize these options for a smooth experience.
Additional Features for a Scoreboard App
We’ve covered the must-have features every scoreboard app needs to succeed. But why stop there? Going the extra mile with additional functionalities can truly delight sports enthusiasts and make your app stand out.
There’s a wide array of features you can incorporate to enrich your app.
Betting odds and box scores
Enhance your app with features like betting odds and box scores, giving users detailed insights into games. Whether they’re tracking in-depth statistics or exploring predictions, this functionality caters to users who enjoy analyzing games beyond just scores. It’s a great way to keep fans engaged and informed.
Live game streaming integration
What’s better than tracking a match? Watching it live! Integrate your app with popular streaming platforms to allow users to watch games directly. This feature transforms your app into a one-stop destination for sports fans, combining score updates with live action.
AI-powered chatbots
An AI chatbot can bring your app to the next level by offering real-time updates, answering user questions, or even delivering personalized content. From “What’s the score?” to “When is the next game?” — your chatbot can become a helpful assistant for fans on the go.
Ticket booking
Why make users switch apps to buy tickets? Integrate a ticket booking feature to let fans purchase seats for upcoming games directly from your app. It’s a convenient way to ensure they never miss the chance to see their favorite teams live.
Player or team statistics tracking
For users who love numbers, tracking player and team statistics is a must. This feature allows fans to dive deeper into performance data, such as goals scored, assists, or win streaks, turning your app into a valuable tool for sports analysis.
Social and community features
Sports are all about bringing people together. Add social and community features like chat rooms, discussion boards, or fan groups to your app. This creates a sense of belonging and allows fans to connect, share opinions, and celebrate victories together.
News feed
Keep users in the loop with the latest sports news by adding a news feed to your app. This feature allows fans to stay updated on important headlines, player transfers, and team updates. By integrating a dynamic news feed, you can keep your audience engaged with fresh content, ensuring they keep coming back for more updates beyond just game scores.
Fantasy sports
Give fans the chance to build their dream teams and compete with others through fantasy sports. This feature enhances engagement and offers users a fun, competitive experience directly within your app.
How to Develop a Scoreboard App Step-by-Step
Creating a scoreboard app involves more than just tracking scores; it’s about delivering a seamless, user-friendly experience for sports enthusiasts, event organizers, or even casual players.
At Perpetio, we specialize in developing apps that are both functional and engaging, ensuring your scoreboard app stands out. Here’s a step-by-step guide to building a scoreboard application.
Step 1: Discuss app requirements
Every project starts with understanding the specifics. To develop a scoreboard app, we begin by gathering detailed information about your goals, the intended audience, and the app’s core functionality. For example, will the app cater to professional sports leagues or casual games? Will it need live scoring updates, player statistics, or team management features?
During this phase, we also clarify technical details, such as whether the app will be developed for iOS, Android, or both. Additionally, we discuss monetization models — such as in-app purchases for premium features or ad-supported free versions — to align the development process with your business objectives. If you’re unsure about these choices, our team provides guidance to help you make the best decisions for your project.
Step 2: Research and analyze competitor apps
A deep dive into the market is crucial for creating a scoreboard app that fills gaps left by competitors. This involves analyzing existing apps to identify their strengths and weaknesses. For example, some apps may excel in live score updates but lack player or team analytics. Popular apps to check out include Apple Sports, ESPN, SofaScore, LiveScore, Yahoo Sports, and FlashScore.
By examining user feedback on app stores, we uncover opportunities to improve upon existing solutions. For instance, users might express frustration with apps that crash during live games or provide delayed updates. These insights help us craft a product that addresses real-world needs. Our research ensures your app not only competes effectively but also offers unique features that set it apart.
Step 3: Define user personas and features
Understanding your target audience is key to designing a scoreboard app that resonates with users. Are you catering to the fans of professional football tournaments, basketball team supporters, baseball enthusiasts, or amateur league enjoyers? Each group has specific needs and expectations.
Once the user personas are defined, we identify core features. These might include:
- Real-time score updates for multiple sports
- Player and team statistics tracking
- Integration with social media for sharing results
- Customization options for themes and layouts
- Offline access for scoring in areas with poor connectivity
Defining these features early ensures a clear development roadmap, saving time and resources later.
Step 4: Design a user-friendly interface
The design of your scoreboard app should be intuitive and visually appealing. At Perpetio, our design process begins with creating wireframes to map user navigation. The goal is to ensure users can access key features — like starting a new game or updating scores — with minimal effort.
A visually engaging interface can enhance user experience. For example, bold typography for team names and dynamic animations for score changes can add excitement during live updates. Color schemes can be tailored to match the branding of specific sports or leagues.
Accessibility is also a priority; we ensure the app is easy to use for all users, including those with visual impairments.
Step 5: Develop the app with scalability in mind
When building a scoreboard app, choosing the right development approach is crucial. Native development ensures optimal performance for iOS and Android devices, while cross-platform frameworks like Flutter can reduce development time and costs.
Scalability is another key consideration. For apps that require live score updates, a robust backend architecture is essential to handle high traffic during major events. To manage large volumes of real-time data, we recommend using technologies such as real-time databases like Firebase or cloud services like AWS, which offer the flexibility and scalability needed for such applications. These tools allow the app to process and deliver score updates without lag, even when thousands of users are simultaneously accessing the data.
For a sports scoreboard app, incorporating specialized APIs is also critical. For example, APIs like SportMonks, API-Football, Football API, and TheRundown provide accurate and real-time sports data for football games in major country leagues and popular international tournaments. Depending on the league you're focusing on, these APIs offer reliable and detailed information such as scores, player statistics, game schedules, and even live game updates. Some of these APIs offer free tiers for smaller apps, which can be a great starting point before scaling up to paid plans as the app grows.
In addition to data fetching, features like push notifications are essential for keeping users engaged by alerting them about score updates, game events, or breaking news. Tools like Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) or OneSignal can streamline the implementation of push notifications. Widgets can further enhance the user experience by providing quick access to live scores directly from the home screen, with platforms like Flutter or SwiftUI simplifying widget creation for both iOS and Android.
Integrating live streaming capabilities can elevate the app further, with solutions like Wowza, AWS IVS (Interactive Video Service), or YouTube Live API offering seamless streaming experiences. Fetching news through dedicated APIs, such as NewsAPI or SportsRadar, can add depth to the app's content, creating a complete, interactive sports experience tailored to users' needs.
By focusing on the right tech stack and prioritizing scalability, you can ensure that your scoreboard app performs smoothly under heavy loads, providing real-time updates and rich user experiences even during major sports events.
Step 6: Test and iterate
Before launching, rigorous testing ensures your scoreboard app is free from bugs and delivers a smooth user experience. Functional testing verifies that all features, from live updates to settings customization, work as intended. Usability testing gathers feedback from real users to identify areas for improvement.
A soft launch can be an effective way to test the app with a smaller audience. This allows you to gather valuable insights and make adjustments before the official release. At Perpetio, we continuously refine the app based on user feedback, ensuring it meets the highest standards of quality and usability.
Step 7: Launch and maintain the app
Once the app is ready, it’s time to publish it on app stores. A well-executed launch strategy includes marketing campaigns, social media promotions, and app store optimization to maximize visibility.
Post-launch, ongoing maintenance is essential to keep the app running smoothly. This includes regular updates to add new features, fix bugs, and ensure compatibility with the latest operating systems. Our team at Perpetio provides long-term support, helping your app stay competitive and relevant.
How Much Does It Cost to Develop a Scoreboard App Like Apple Sports
The cost of developing a scoreboard app varies depending on its complexity and features. A basic app with essential functionality might cost starting from $30,000, while a more advanced app with live updates, analytics, and integrations could require a larger budget.
At Perpetio, we work closely with clients to provide transparent cost estimates and tailored solutions. Whether you’re building an MVP or a fully-featured app, we help you achieve your vision within your budget.
Consider Perpetio Your Trusted Partner
When developing a scoreboard app, choosing the right partner is crucial to ensure your app is not only functional but also user-friendly, secure, and scalable.
At Perpetio, we take a holistic approach to mobile app development, working closely with you from the very beginning to ensure that every aspect of your app contributes to its overall success.
Perpetio has extensive experience in creating sports apps, including the scoreboard app showcased here, which combines user-centric features with seamless functionality. This app offers fans an all-in-one platform to stay engaged with their favorite teams and matches.
Livescore app by Perpetio
Key features include displaying the scores of followed teams or the most popular games right at the top, ensuring users can access the information they care about instantly.
The match schedules section allows users to plan their sports viewing without missing a single moment, while the news feed delivers the latest updates in sports, keeping users informed and connected.
Additionally, the app provides detailed match statistics, such as ball possession, passes, fouls, and more, alongside individual player stats, giving fans a deeper understanding of team and player performances.
Ready to turn your scoreboard app concept into reality? Reach out to us or click on a chatbot for a free app cost estimate, and let’s start building something extraordinary together!
