Apple gets ready for the 2018 World Cup by prepping Siri, the App Store and more
Every four years, soccer becomes a little more popular in the U.S. thanks to the World Cup. Instead of watching tense playoff atmosphere baseball match-ups like the Reds and Marlins (that's called sarcasm in case you're not a sports fan), bars all over the country will have their televisions tuned to a sport that doesn't register in the states during three out of every four years, even if the U.S. didn't qualify this time around. With the 2018 games starting this Thursday with host country Russia taking on Saudi Arabia, Apple has infused the World Cup into Siri, the App Store, iBooks and Podcasts.
What exactly does that mean? Well, let's say you want to find out the score of the Morocco-Iran contest. The same way you ask Siri for the score of the Yankees-Red Sox game, you can ask the virtual assistant for the latest scores of World Cup games (excuse us, matches) in progress, and those that have been completed. Apple says that Siri will be able to respond to questions like:
- When does France play Australia?
- What teams are in group A?
- Who is on the England squad?
- Who won the Argentina-Iceland match?
Siri will have this knowledge on display in the 26 countries (including the U.S.) where Siri normally passes along sports scores, and other locations like Brazil, Russia, Denmark, Finland, Malaysia, Turkey, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and Israel.
During the month, the App Store will also celebrate World Cup 2018 by revealing the favorite apps and games from some of soccer's star players. The App Store is where you'll find apps that will stream some of the matches such as FOX Now and BBC Sport. Games such as FIFA Mobile and PES 2018 will also be available. And you will be given tips on how to take the best soccer photo, and where on social media you can find other soccer fans.
The News app will also offer in-depth coverage of World Cup 2018 with scores, schedules and profiles of key players. Apple Music will have 32 playlists, one representing each country in the tournament, and on iBooks there will be an "editorial collection" called The Beautiful Game. There you can read biographies, memoirs, and non-fiction content describing amazing victories, underdog champions and national heroes.
source: Apple
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