Get ready for the game with new football features in Search

With U.S. football season underway, Google announced upgrades designed to make Search a game-day guide, per Senior Director of Product Management Denise Ho. The new features aim to help users follow every moment of a game, dig into detailed player and league stats, and get tailored fantasy football recommendations.

The headline addition is a Live Game Feed: searching for an in-progress game surfaces a red "Live" icon and a real-time view with an overall recap of the game so far plus a dynamic timeline containing play-by-play updates, top social commentary, key video highlights, and AI-powered insights. The feed is available now for professional football on mobile in the U.S. in English, with collegiate team support and broader international availability promised later in the month.

Search is also expanding its matchup and stats coverage. Searching a matchup now shows a carousel for checking scores from other games around the league without searching for each one individually. New stats include league leaders in categories such as passing touchdowns and rushing yards, along with more granular player metrics like sacks, fumbles, and yards after catch. Coming soon, Search will show which teams are favored to win the championship as well as playoff brackets. These updates, including the matchup carousel, roll out globally on mobile.

For fantasy players, Google is adding account linking: users can connect their Yahoo Fantasy or Sleeper account with Search and request customized insights through AI Mode. Asking AI Mode for lineup help surfaces an option to securely link a fantasy account, after which Search can use context from the live roster and all of a user's leagues to answer questions like start/sit decisions and waiver wire targets without manual data entry or screenshots. Users can also ask AI Mode to assess their draft picks or provide a weekly recap of league happenings.