# MZAP--Mobile Application for Basketball Match Tracking and Digitalization of Endgame Reports
###### Abstract  
This paper presents MZAP, a mobile application designed to digitalize basketball match tracking and generate secure, searchable endgame reports. Used by the Basketball League of Serbia, MZAP creates tamper-proof digitally signed records stored as password-protected PDFs with unique UUIDs, digital signatures, and QR codes. Each report is accompanied by a JSON file containing match data, enabling efficient validation through hashed checksums and facilitating data extraction and searchability. The system supports both online and offline modes, bilingual interfaces, mobile and tablet use, and includes features such as WiFi-based monitoring, physical printing, and various sharing options. The solution aims to reduce officials' working time and increase data accuracy by minimizing human error through structural and UI-level validation methods and real-time monitoring by multiple observers during games. As part of the MZAP software suite, MZAP Converter is under development to support the digitization of legacy paper-based reports using custom CRNN neural networks to optically recognize and digitize historical paper-based reports, bringing them to the same standard as newly created digital ones. The paper also reflects on the broader impact of digital transformation within the Basketball League of Serbia. basketball; endgame; report; digitization; digitalization; match tracking; android application Article  
10 May  
endgame record storing and on-demand data extraction. To address these issues, a solution that handles the archiving of past and future endgame reports must be created. MZAP (an abbreviation that stands for \"Mobilni Zapisnik\" in Serbian, meaning \"Mobile Match Report\" in English) is an Android application that solves the problem of archiving future endgame reports. It is intended to handle endgame reports for the Basketball League of Serbia. However, with slight modifications, it can manage endgame reports for other leagues as well. The core of the MZAP application is essentially a basketball game tracking system, similar to the one used by FIBA [1], with the addition of generating digitally signed, password-protected endgame reports that include a QR code. This application defines structures and methods for handling both future and past endgame reports. To address the large archive of paper-based endgame reports in the Basketball League of Serbia, the MZAP Converter application is being developed as part of the broader MZAP software suite. Currently in beta and operating through a command-line interface, MZAP Converter leverages a Convolutional Recurrent Neural Network (CRNN) trained on a custom dataset composed of scanned historical reports. The OCR model is tailored to the layout and structure of league-specific forms, and early testing has shown promising performance, though formal evaluation and optimization are ongoing. While not flawless, this approach is significantly faster and more efficient than the manual transcription of paper-based match endgame reports into digital form. Unlike off-the-shelf OCR solutions, a custom model was developed to ensure independence from third-party software. The design, implementation, and performance evaluation of the MZAP Converter and its CRNN neural network will be the subject of a follow-up paper, to be published once the software exits beta and is deemed stable for systematic testing and benchmarking. The application outputs a JSON file containing structured match data for indexing, search, and data retrieval, and a generated PDF endgame match report file based on the mentioned match data. Both outputs are later stored on the MZAP server. This will enable comprehensive digitization and archiving of both historical and future match reports. Since the application runs on mobile phones and tablets, it addresses several technical challenges commonly faced by basketball officials, such as the unavailability of laptops, complex setup procedures at game venues, and limited internet connectivity.