A method for automatically detecting, within a digital video frame, a video frame region that depicts a textual expression of a scoreboard, the method comprising: receiving, by a computing system, the digital video frame, wherein the digital video frame depicts scoreboard image elements, wherein the depicted scoreboard image elements include the textual expression and other image elements, and wherein the computing system comprises a processing unit; engaging, by the computing system, in an edge-detection process to detect edges of at least the depicted scoreboard image elements in the received digital video frame, wherein at least some of the detected edges (i) are of the textual expression and (ii) define alphanumeric shapes; applying pattern-recognition, by the computing system, to identify the alphanumeric shapes, wherein applying the pattern-recognition to identify a given one of the alphanumeric shapes comprises (i) identifying one or more edges, of the detected edges, based on the one or more identified edges enclosing an area within the digital video frame and (ii) determining that the enclosed area has an alphanumeric characteristic and responsively deeming the one or more identified edges as defining the given alphanumeric shape; establishing, by the computing system, a plurality of minimum bounding rectangles each bounding a respective one of the identified alphanumeric shapes in the digital video frame; establishing in the digital video frame, by the computing system, based on at least two of the minimum bounding rectangles, a composite shape that encompasses the identified alphanumeric shapes that were bounded by the at least two minimum bounding rectangles, wherein the at least two minimum bounding rectangles comprise first and second minimum bounding rectangles, wherein establishing the composite shape comprises extending at least the first minimum bounding rectangle by a particular extent, and wherein the extending merges together at least the extended first minimum bounding rectangle and the second minimum bounding rectangle into the composite shape; and based on the established composite shape occupying a particular region of the digital video frame, deeming, by the computing system, the particular region to be the video frame region that depicts the textual expression of the scoreboard. receiving, by a computing system, the digital video frame, wherein the digital video frame depicts scoreboard image elements, wherein the depicted scoreboard image elements include the textual expression and other image elements, and wherein the computing system comprises a processing unit; engaging, by the computing system, in an edge-detection process to detect edges of at least the depicted scoreboard image elements in the received digital video frame, wherein at least some of the detected edges (i) are of the textual expression and (ii) define alphanumeric shapes; applying pattern-recognition, by the computing system, to identify the alphanumeric shapes, wherein applying the pattern-recognition to identify a given one of the alphanumeric shapes comprises (i) identifying one or more edges, of the detected edges, based on the one or more identified edges enclosing an area within the digital video frame and (ii) determining that the enclosed area has an alphanumeric characteristic and responsively deeming the one or more identified edges as defining the given alphanumeric shape; establishing, by the computing system, a plurality of minimum bounding rectangles each bounding a respective one of the identified alphanumeric shapes in the digital video frame; establishing in the digital video frame, by the computing system, based on at least two of the minimum bounding rectangles, a composite shape that encompasses the identified alphanumeric shapes that were bounded by the at least two minimum bounding rectangles, wherein the at least two minimum bounding rectangles comprise first and second minimum bounding rectangles, wherein establishing the composite shape comprises extending at least the first minimum bounding rectangle by a particular extent, and wherein the extending merges together at least the extended first minimum bounding rectangle and the second minimum bounding rectangle into the composite shape; and based on the established composite shape occupying a particular region of the digital video frame, deeming, by the computing system, the particular region to be the video frame region that depicts the textual expression of the scoreboard.