The notification that ruins the game

I met today with a brilliant design researcher working in sports. He shared a great little story about notifications in sports apps.

Designers often think they’re doing something positive — helping fans celebrate a goal, or keeping them updated on big moments. The intention is good.

But here’s the problem: most people hate them. Why? Because live broadcasts have delays — sometimes 10 or even 30 seconds.

Imagine this: you’re watching Chelsea fight for their lives in defence. Suddenly, you get a notification — “Chelsea score!” A few seconds later, you see the counterattack start… and 10 seconds later Chelsea concede. Spoiler delivered, experience ruined.

It’s a funny example of how a feature that looks good in theory completely fails in the real world.

The lesson? When you ship new features, test them yourself.

Install them on your own phone, live with them for a few days. You’ll spot problems much faster — and fix them before users hate them.