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A smartphone app is quietly changing how Brazilian soccer clubs discover their next stars. Cuju, built by Germany’s Rogon Technologies, uses artificial intelligence to evaluate young players through standardized video drills, producing objective performance scores that replace the gut instincts of traditional scouts.
The platform has racked up around 160,000 downloads by mid-2026, with over 80,000 participants engaging in pilot programs across Brazil. Santos F.C., one of the country’s most storied clubs and the team that launched Pelé and Neymar, is among those using the app’s regional rankings to identify promising talent.
How a phone camera replaces the clipboard
Young players record themselves performing standardized drills on their smartphones, covering skills like ball control, speed, and agility. The AI system then analyzes the footage and produces objective performance scores.
The app creates regional leaderboards that give scouts from professional clubs a curated pool of talent to browse. Top-ranked players get invited to live scouting events and in-person trials, bridging the gap between digital evaluation and real-world opportunity.
One such event in Santa Catarina featured over 150 top-ranked players, giving clubs direct access to talent they might never have seen through conventional scouting networks.
Rogon Technologies, the company behind Cuju, brings serious sports industry credentials. The firm was co-founded by Roger Wittmann, a prominent player agent, and Luiz Gustavo, the former Bayern Munich and Brazil national team midfielder. Their European agency network gives the platform built-in credibility with clubs on both sides of the Atlantic.
Brazil’s talent pipeline problem
Traditional scouting relies on personal networks, word of mouth, and scouts physically traveling to watch games. That system inherently favors players in major urban centers with established youth academies. A gifted 15-year-old in a small town in Minas Gerais or the Amazon basin might never cross paths with a professional scout.
The 80,000 pilot program participants suggest real traction, not just downloads sitting idle on phones. That engagement number indicates players are actively recording drills and competing for rankings, which is the behavioral loop that makes the platform useful to clubs.
Santos F.C. is a particularly fitting early adopter. The club has historically built its identity around youth development rather than expensive transfers. Having a data-driven tool to widen the scouting net aligns with that DNA.
What this means for sports tech investors
Cuju has zero crypto integration. No tokens, no blockchain protocols, no digital assets of any kind.
That’s notable because sports has been one of crypto’s favorite verticals for the past several years. Fan tokens, NFT ticketing, blockchain-based loyalty programs: the industry has seen no shortage of Web3 pitches aimed at clubs and leagues. Yet the platform actually gaining traction in one of football’s most important talent markets runs on plain old AI and cloud infrastructure.
Cuju’s growth in Brazil, from launch around 2025 to 160,000 downloads roughly a year later, shows how quickly adoption can scale when the value proposition is clear to both sides of the marketplace: players get visibility, clubs get data.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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