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Objective: To analyze the effect of activation throughbilateral or unilateral strength and plyometric exercises onhorizontal jump performance. Methodology: The studyinvolved 15 highly trained male soccer players (age, 24.7± 3.1 years; height, 181.2 ± 4.7 cm; weight, 79.7 ± 3.4 kg)from the same team competing in the national league.Their regular training routine consisted of 4 sessions and1 competitive match per week. Participants performed 1control protocol (CON) and 3 activation protocols followinga counterbalanced design based on specific soccerexercises (SIN), bilateral (BIL), and unilateral (UNI) strengthand plyometric exercises. After each protocol, playersunderwent the horizontal jump test (HZB). Results: Therepeated measures ANOVA revealed significant positiveeffects on HZB for the SIN (p<0.01; diff = 2.95(2.00) %), BIL(p<0.01; diff = 3.22(2.61) %), and UNI (p<0.01; diff = 6.80(3.40)%) protocols compared to CON. Furthermore, HZB wassignificantly higher after the UNI protocol than after SIN(p<0.01; diff = 3.74(2.62) %) and BIL (p<0.01; diff = 3.47(1.94)%). Individual response analysis reflected positive effectson HZB for SIN, BIL, and UNI compared to CON, while 89 %of players showed better HZB performance after UNI thanafter BIL. Conclusions: Activation incorporating unilateralstrength and plyometric stimuli has a greater positiveeffect on horizontal jump capacity than activation involvinggeneral, soccer-specific, and bilateral exercises., Objetivo: Analisar o efeito da ativação por meio deexercícios de força e pliométricos bilaterais ou unilateraisno desempenho do salto horizontal. Metodologia: O estudoenvolveu 15 jogadores de futebol masculinos altamentetreinados (idade, 24.7 ± 3.1 anos; altura, 181.2 ± 4.7 cm;peso, 79.7 ± 3.4 kg) da mesma equipe competindo na liganacional. Sua rotina de treinamento regular consistia em 4sessões e 1 jogo competitivo por semana. Os participantesrealizaram 1 protocolo de controle (CON) e 3 protocolosde ativação seguindo um desenho contrabalanceado combase em exercícios específicos de futebol (SIN), exercíciosde força e pliométricos bilaterais (BIL) e unilaterais (UNI).Após cada protocolo, os jogadores foram submetidos aoteste de salto horizontal (HZB). Resultados: A ANOVA demedidas repetidas revelou efeitos positivos significativosno HZB para os protocolos SIN (p<0.01; diff = 2.95(2.00)%), BIL (p<0.01; diff = 3.22(2.61) %) e UNI (p<0.01; diff =6.80(3.40) %) em comparação com CON. Além disso, o HZBfoi significativamente maior após o protocolo UNI do queapós SIN (p<0.01; diff = 3.74(2.62) %) e BIL (p<0.01; diff =3.47(1.94) %). A análise de resposta individual refletiu efeitospositivos no HZB para SIN, BIL e UNI em comparação comCON, enquanto 89 % dos jogadores mostraram melhordesempenho de HZB após UNI do que após BIL. Conclusões:A ativação incorporando estímulos de força e pliométricosunilaterais tem um efeito positivo maior na capacidade desalto horizontal do que a ativação envolvendo exercíciosgerais, específicos do futebol e bilaterais, Objetivo: Analizar el efecto de una activación realizada a través de ejercicios de fuerza y pliometría ejecutados de forma bilateral o unilateral sobre el rendimiento en salto horizontal. Metodología: En el estudio participaron 15 futbolistas masculinos, altamente entrenados (edad, 24.7 ± 3.1 años; altura, 181.2 ± 4.7 cm; peso, 79.7 ± 3.4 kg) pertenecientesal mismo equipo, que competía en liga nacional. Su rutina de entrenamiento regular constaba de 4 sesiones y 1 partido competitivo por semana. Los participantes llevaron a cabo 1 protocolo control (CON) y 3 protocolos de activación,siguiendo un diseño contrabalanceado, basados en ejercicios específicos de fútbol (SIN), ejercicios de fuerza y pliometría ejecutados de forma bilateral (BIL) y unilateral (UNI). Después de cada protocolo los jugadores realizaron la pruebade salto horizontal (HZB). Resultados: Los resultados de la prueba ANOVA de medidas repetidas mostraron efectospositivos significativos sobre el HZB de los protocolos SIN (p<0.01; dif = 2.95(2.00)%), BIL (p<0.01; dif = 3.22(2.61) %); yUNI (p<0.01; dif = 6.80(3.40) %) con respecto a CON. Además, HZB fue, significativamente, mayor después del protocoloUNI que del SIN (p<0.01; dif = 3.74(2.62) %) y BIL (p<0.01; dif = 3.47(1.94) %). El análisis de la respuesta individual reflejóefectos positivos en HZB de los protocolos SIN, BIL y UNI respecto al CON, mientras que el 89 % de los jugadores tuvieron mejor rendimiento en HZB después de UNI que de BIL. Conclusiones: Una activación que incorpora estímulos defuerza y pliometría ejecutados, de forma unilateral, tiene un efecto positivo mayor sobre la capacidad de salto horizontal, que una activación que involucra ejercicios generales, específicos de fútbol y de ejecución bilateral.

Desde inicios del nuevo milenio se suscitaron acontecimientos que han sido determinantes en el proceso de profesionalización del futbol peruano a nivel de clubes. La presente investigación busca analizar cuáles han sido estas circunstancias determinantes e interpretar en base a los hallazgos de la investigación, su influencia real en este proceso. De igual manera, esta investigación busca ser un punto de partida para futuras investigaciones en la gestión deportiva nacional, que complementen la interpretación de los resultados y sirva como material bibliográfico del ámbito de investigación., Since the beginning of the new millennium, events have taken place that have been key factors in the process of professionalization of Peruvian soccer at club level. This research seeks to analyze what these determining circumstances have been and to interpret, based on the findings of the research, their real influence on this process. Likewise, this research seeks to be a starting point for future research in Peruvian sports management, which will complement the interpretation of the results and serve as bibliographic material in the field of research., Tesis

Exercise can disrupt the fluid balance, hindering performance and athlete health. Limited data exist on fluid balance responses in varying climates, sexes, and ages. This study aimed to measure and compare fluid balance and urine values among elite soccer players during training at high and low temperatures, examining the differences between sexes, playing positions, and competitive levels within men’s soccer. During the 2022–2023 competitive season, a descriptive observational study was conducted on 87 soccer players from an elite Spanish soccer team. The study found that none of the groups exceeded weight loss values of 1.5% of their body mass. Additionally, the soccer players studied experienced higher weight loss, fluid intake, and a higher sweat rate (SR) during summer training compared to winter training. During the summer, male U23-21 soccer players exhibited higher levels of weight loss, fluid intake, and a higher SR compared to female soccer players or the U19-17 male category. No significant differences were found between playing positions. In conclusion, differences in the fluid balance were observed based on the climatic conditions, competitive level, and sex.

Neurofeedback training is applied in the world of sports as a means to improve athletes' performance. Training sessions are usually organized on an individual basis, one at a time. Here we investigated if the training could also be organized in groups. Forty-one national-level football (soccer) players (26 females, 15 males) carried out training sessions simultaneously in groups of up to 13, using a wearable device with Bluetooth connection, during their regular training hours at the club. It was possible to obtain good EEG measurements using this setup, albeit with a somewhat higher data loss than usual in standard laboratory sessions. The brain's alpha activity was trained using music-based neurofeedback in a crossover design. A training session consisted of alternating periods of neurofeedback and execution of cognitive tasks. EEG alpha (8-12 Hz) activity was higher in the neurofeedback periods compared to the cognitive task periods, and the reverse was true for beta (13-30 Hz) activity. The training program resulted in an increase of 34% in alpha activity associated with the training, and improved the athletes' performance on task switching and mental rotation tasks. In addition, self-reported sleep duration, as well as scores on the Being in Shape questionnaire (Feeling of Control and Flow) also improved. This study shows that neurofeedback training is feasible in groups of athletes, which can stimulate its application in team sports.

The Functional Movement Screen (FMS®) is a test battery to identify stability and mobility problems and a guide to orient training. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the functional fitness level of male youth soccer players of different categories (U-13, n = 21; U-14, n = 35; U-15, n = 16; U-17, n = 19) from the department of Maldonado, Uruguay, using the FMS®. No significant differences were observed between the categories in terms of the performance obtained in each of the tests (p > 0.05), with the mean total FMS® score being 16.4 ± 0.8 points (less than desirable). This finding suggests that, as athletes' age and level of competition increases, their mobility and stability deficits are not corrected. Professionals in charge of the physical and motor evaluation of youth soccer players should incorporate tools such as FMS® since they provide valuable information to estimate their functional aptitude. Based on this, it is recommended to program training taking into account the development of fundamental movement patterns, preparing players for specific sports skills., El Functional Movement Screen (FMS®) constituye una batería de test para identificar problemas de estabilidad y movilidad, y una guía para orientar el entrenamiento. El propósito de la presente investigación fue evaluar y comparar mediante el FMS® el nivel de aptitud funcional del movimiento de jugadores de fútbol varones juveniles de diferentes categorías (sub-13, n = 21; sub-14, n = 35; sub-15, n = 16; sub-17, n = 19) del departamento de Maldonado, Uruguay. No se observaron diferencias significativas entre las categorías en cuanto al rendimiento obtenido en cada una de las pruebas (p > 0,05), siendo la media del puntaje total del FMS® de 16,4 ± 0,8 puntos (inferior a lo considerado deseable). Este hallazgo sugiere que, a medida que aumenta la edad y el nivel de competición de los deportistas, no se corrigen sus déficits de movilidad y estabilidad. Se aconseja que los profesionales a cargo de la evaluación física y motriz de futbolistas juveniles incorporen herramientas como el FMS®, ya que aportan información valiosa para estimar la aptitud funcional de los mismos. A partir de esto, se recomienda programar entrenamientos teniendo en consideración el desarrollo de los patrones fundamentales de movimiento, preparando a los jugadores para habilidades deportivas específicas.

The aim of this study was to analyze which variables were most important for the teams’ final rank. Executive function, deliberate practice, and biological maturation between a higher-ranked and a lower-ranked team in the championship were considered. The 51 players were divided into the top and bottom team. The players underwent stop-signal, design fluency, and verbal fluency tests. Deliberate practice was asked by questionnaire, and biological maturation was based on maturity offset. The statistical analyses were performed with discriminant analysis and a comparison between teams. The results showed a discriminatory power in biological maturation, deliberate practice, and design fluency test. The Stop-Signal results show statistically significant differences in favor of the top team (SSRT: p=0.006 / d=0.84 and MRT: p=0.016 / d=0.74). Moreover, players in the top team had more deliberate practice time (p<0.000 / d=1.41), as well more advanced maturation (p<0.000 / d=1.62) than the players in the bottom team. Therefore, executive function, deliberate practice, and biological maturation seems to be essential for collective soccer success and should be stimulated in training sessions., El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar qué variables fueron más importantes para la clasificación final de los equipos. Se consideraron la función ejecutiva, la práctica deliberada y la maduración biológica entre un equipo de mayor y menor ranking en el campeonato. Los 51 jugadores se dividieron en el equipo superior y el inferior. Los jugadores se sometieron a pruebas de señal de stop, fluidez en el diseño y fluidez verbal. La práctica deliberada se preguntó mediante un cuestionario y la maduración biológica se basó en la compensación de la madurez. Los análisis estadísticos se realizaron con análisis discriminante y comparación entre equipos. Los resultados mostraron un poder discriminatorio en las pruebas de maduración biológica, práctica deliberada y fluidez en el diseño. Los resultados de Stop-Signal muestran diferencias estadísticamente significativas a favor del mejor equipo (SSRT: p=0,006 / d=0,84 y MRT: p=0,016 / d=0,74). Además, los jugadores del equipo superior tuvieron más tiempo de práctica deliberado (p<0,000 / d=1,41), así como una maduración más avanzada (p<0,000 / d=1,62) que los jugadores del equipo inferior. Por lo tanto, la función ejecutiva, la práctica deliberada y la maduración biológica parecen ser esenciales para el éxito colectivo del fútbol y deben estimularse en las sesiones de entrenamiento.

As the top sport in the world without any doubt, soccer has a wide influence on human society. Since the beginning of modern soccer, soccer tactics have been developed for a long time. Clearly, it requires data for soccer analysis, which includes not only the match results between each team but also performance of players on the pitch. Playmaker.ai, where this degree project has been carried out, is a company that provides soccer analysis services. The major purpose of this project is to create a system that can generate player position by analyzing video data without bird-view information. Besides player position generation, some progress has been made in expected goal calculation and implemented some data preprocessing tools. In this project, the goal is accomplished in following steps: 1. Detect players from camera view images by using YOLO (You Only Look Once) network. 2. Use Strong-Sort method to track the position of players and ball in a long video. 3. Assign the teams to different detected object, methods including K-means are used in this step. 4. Generate bird view position by using perspective transformation method The result shows that all the machine model successfully converged and achieve good performance in practical usage, despite that there are still existing limitations and problems. By using this system, a 2-D map with player position on this map can be generated. And the data preprocessing tools can also be used for the company. Admittedly, because of several limitation in practical development, there are problems and disadvantage of the system. This system could be considered as a prototype of a complete method for solving multiple issues in soccer data analysis based on machine learning and computer vision. The future developers can iterate this project for further improvement., Som den bästa sporten i världen utan tvekan har fotboll ett stort inflytande på det mänskliga samhället. Sedan starten av modern fotboll har fotbollstaktik utvecklats under lång tid. Det kräver helt klart data för fotbollsanalys, som inte bara inkluderar matchresultaten mellan varje lag utan även spelarnas prestation på planen. Playmaker.ai, där jag gjorde det här examensarbetet, är ett företag som tillhandahåller fotbollsanalystjänster. Huvudsyftet med detta projekt är att skapa ett system som kan generera spelarposition genom att analysera videodata utan fågelvyinformation. Förutom spelarpositionsgenerering, gjorde jag också vissa framsteg i xG-beräkning och implementerade några verktyg för förbearbetning av data. I det här projektet uppnådde jag målet i följande steg: 1.Upptäck spelare från kameravisningsbilder genom att använda YOLOv5-nätverket. 2. Använd Strong-Sort-metoden för att spåra spelares och bollens position i en lång video. 3. Tilldela teamen till olika upptäckta objekt, metoder inklusive Kmeans används i detta steg. 4. Generera fågelvyposition genom att använda perspektivomvandlings-metoden. Resultatet visar att alla maskinmodeller framgångsrikt konvergerade och uppnår bra prestanda i praktisk användning, trots att det fortfarande finns begränsningar och problem. Genom att använda detta system kan vi framgångsrikt generera en 2D-karta med spelarposition på denna karta. Och verktygen för dataförbehandling kan också användas för företaget. Visserligen, på grund av flera begränsningar i praktisk utveckling, finns det problem och nackdelar med systemet. Detta system skulle kunna betraktas som en prototyp av en komplett metod för att lösa flera problem inom fotbollsdataanalys baserad på maskininlärning och datorseende. Den framtida utvecklaren kan upprepa detta projekt för att göra framsteg.

Introduction: Despite the unique act of actively using the head as part of the game in soccer, insufficient attention is paid to its potential harmful effects. There is an increased concern regarding head trauma in soccer and its impact both in the short- and long-term. Only a few studies have examined the ability of head protection to mitigate head trauma, and opinions differ regarding its effectiveness. Objective: The purpose of this project was to investigate the injury mechanisms behind concussions in soccer and its short- and long-term effect. Furthermore, the project aimed to evaluate the ability of head protection to protect against head impacts in soccer. Methods: Two finite element models of THUMS version 4.02 pedestrians were used to simulate head collisions between two players, with the aim of mimic an aerial duel in soccer. Different impact angles and impact points were simulated, after which worst case scenarios were selected for further evaluation with head protection. The kinematics of the head and the strains of the brain tissue were used to evaluate the head's response to impacts and to evaluate the effectiveness of head protection. Results: The study showed that the maximum strain of the brain tissue as well as the kinematics of the head were sensitive to the point of impact, while the angle of impact did not show any significant influence. Head protection showed a good ability to reduce the kinematics of the head and the strain of the brain tissue. A thicker head protector had an increased ability to reduce the max values and a low friction head protector had the capacity to further reduce the max values in certain types of impacts. Conclusion: Head protection showed promising ability to reduce head kinematics and the maximum strain of the brain tissue., Introduktion: Trots den unika handlingen av att aktivt använda huvudet som en del av spelet i fotboll, ägnas otillräcklig uppmärksamhet åt dess potentiella skadliga effekter. Det finns en ökad oro kring huvudtrauman inom fotboll och dess påverkan både på kort och lång sikt. Endast ett fåtal studier har undersökt huvudskydds förmåga att mildra huvudtrauman och olika åsikter råder angående dess effektivitet. Syfte: Syftet med detta projekt var att undersöka skademekanismerna bakom hjärnskakningar inom fotboll samt dess kort- och långsiktiga påverkan. Vidare ämnade projektet till att utvärdera ett huvudskydds förmåga att skydda vid huvudislag inom fotboll. Metoder: Två finita element modeller av THUMS version 4.02 fotgängarmodell användes för att simulera huvudkollisioner mellan två spelare, i syfte att imitera en luftduell i fotboll. Olika islagsvinklar och islagspunkter simulerades varpå värsta scenarier valdes för vidare utvärdering med huvudskydd. Huvudets kinematik samt töjningar av hjärnvävnaden användes för utvärdering av huvudets respons på islag samt för att undersöka huvudskydds effektivitet. Resultat: Studien visade att den maximala töjningen av hjärnvävnaden samt kinematiken av huvudet var känslig för islagspunkt medan islagsvinkeln inte visade på någon signifikant inverkan. Huvudskydd visade på god förmåga att reducera huvudets kinematik och töjningen av hjärnvävnaden. Ett tjockare huvudskydd hade en ökad förmåga att reducera maxvärdenaoch ett huvudskydd med låg friktion hade kapaciteten att reducera maxvärdena ytterligare vid vissa typer av islag.. Slutsats: Huvudskydd visade på lovande förmåga att reducera huvudets kinematik och den maximala töjningen av hjärnvävnaden.

Bakgrund: Ruscher är en vanlig aktion som fotbollsspelare utför under fotbollsmatcher. Flera studier har undersökt ruschers roll i diverse situationer på fotbollen med olika resultat. Däremot finns det en kunskapslucka då inga studier på amatörfotbollsspelare har identifierats. Syfte: Syftet med studien var att undersöka mängden rusher som herrfotbollsspelare genomför mellan tre olika lägre divisioner under ordinarie seriematchspel samt undersöka om mängden ruscher påverkar antalet gjorda mål. Metod: För datainsamlingen användes accelerometrar av modell Actigraph GT3X+. Datamaterialet från accelerometrarna laddades ned till excel i sekundformat. I Excel skapades ett program som räknade ut antal cykler på minst 4 sekunder med över 200 counts i rad. Datan analyserades genom Kruskal-Wallis samt med parvisa Mann-Whitney tester för att upptäcka skillnad mellan grupperna. För att se korrelationen mellan antal mål och antal ruscher genomfördes Spearmans korrelationstest. Resultat: Signifikanta skillnader i antal ruscher hittades mellan divisioner. Ingen signifikant korrelation hittades mellan gjorda mål och antal ruscher. Slutsats: Slutsatsen är att det finns skillnader mellan divisionerna i utförda ruscher. Division 3 och 5 genomför i snitt lika många ruscher, men division 5 spelare har en större variation mellan spelarna i mängden utförda ruscher. Resultatet för studien visar också att antal ruscher inte korrelerar med antal mål vilket kan indikera att det inte är antal ruscher som avgör mål, utan andra faktorer såsom kvalitet och hastighet på ruscherna., Background: Sprints is a regular action that football players perform during matches. Many studies have researched the variation of sprints in different football divisions with different results. There is no research found on sprint performance between amateur divisions in football which this study aims to research. Purpose: The purpose with this study was to compare the amount of sprints male football players carry out between three different lower Swedish football divisions during ordinary series matches. Adding to this, the study aims to also examine if the amount of sprints performed in matches is also affecting the amount of scored goals. Method: For the data collection, accelerometers of the model Actigraph GT3X was used. The data from the accelerometers were downloaded to excel in 1 second cycles. In excel a programme was created which counted the amount of cycles with at least 4 seconds with over 200 counts in a row. Data was analyzed through Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests to see if there was a significant difference between the groups. To see the correlation between the amount of goals and number of sprints the Spearman's correlation test was used. Results: Significant differences in the amount of sprints were found between divisions. No significant correlation could be found between scored goals and amount of sprints. Conclusion: The conclusion of the study is that there are differences between the divisions in performed sprints during matches. No significant differences were found between Division 3 and 5 players in the number of sprints performed, but division 5 players had a bigger variation in the amount of sprints performed. The result for the study also shows that the amount of sprints are not correlated with the amount of scored goals which can indicate that it is not the amount of sprints that is the deciding factor for goals but instead other factors like quality and speed off the sprints.

Talent development environments are usually group-based, meaning athletes comprise each other’s learning context. Consequently, athletes’ ability to learn with and from each other is essential. This implies that there is a key role for coaches to play in cultivating reciprocal, cooperative athletes and creating talent environments in which participants can ‘learn to learn’. The aim of this study was to create knowledge on day-to-day coaching conduct that supports the development of athletes’ reciprocal abilities. Observations of 75 h of football (soccer) lessons within the Swedish Football Association’s school sports programme – a cornerstone of the FA’s talent development system, located in upper secondary schools – were carried out over the course of three school semesters, and included in-depth interviews with the teacher-coaches. Data were analysed using the five key teaching pillars within a cooperative learning approach: positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction, interpersonal skills and group processing. Findings show how teacher-coaches engage in activities that focus on organization of lessons and structuring of group work to create situations where individuals are motivated to learn, but also motivated to support other group members’ learning. Thereby, teacher-coaches place more emphasis on positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction. In contrast, findings also show how teacher-coaches to a lesser extent perform coaching conduct associated with lesson content that has the potential to develop the skills and abilities required to participate in and benefit from group work – interpersonal skills, and group processing. This means that while teacher-coaches seem well-equipped to create learning environments that support reciprocal learning, they may benefit from challenging the role of the coach as an expert and tackle the preconceptions around cooperative behaviours that athletes bring from

Localization and tracking in multiplayer sports present significant challenges. Existing global positioning system (GPS) and ultra wideband (UWB)-based methods have higher accuracy but require players to wear inconvenient electronic devices. On the other hand, camera-based solutions are device-free, but have unsatisfied accuracy and necessitate significant manual intervention. Thus, we introduced a light detection and ranging (LiDAR)-camera fused system tailored for soccer scenarios, which can combine highest position accuracy and convenient application. With this continuous data collection system, a new benchmark dataset is constructed, and a simple and effective tracking-by-detection method is designed. The method comprises two main modules. The cascade PointNet module effectively identifies players from the point cloud, while the subsequent Tracklet-Zoom module efficiently performs tracklet association. Our method shows significant improvements in multiple evaluation metrics compared with other methods. Specifically, we achieved a score of 95.21% on the GT-consistency metric, representing a 13.29% increase. This indicates that our method has made substantial progress toward achieving automated tracking., QC 20240620

Talent development environments are usually group-based, meaning athletes comprise each other’s learning context. Consequently, athletes’ ability to learn with and from each other is essential. This implies that there is a key role for coaches to play in cultivating reciprocal, cooperative athletes and creating talent environments in which participants can ‘learn to learn’. The aim of this study was to create knowledge on day-to-day coaching conduct that supports the development of athletes’ reciprocal abilities. Observations of 75 h of football (soccer) lessons within the Swedish Football Association’s school sports programme – a cornerstone of the FA’s talent development system, located in upper secondary schools – were carried out over the course of three school semesters, and included in-depth interviews with the teacher-coaches. Data were analysed using the five key teaching pillars within a cooperative learning approach: positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction, interpersonal skills and group processing. Findings show how teacher-coaches engage in activities that focus on organization of lessons and structuring of group work to create situations where individuals are motivated to learn, but also motivated to support other group members’ learning. Thereby, teacher-coaches place more emphasis on positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction. In contrast, findings also show how teacher-coaches to a lesser extent perform coaching conduct associated with lesson content that has the potential to develop the skills and abilities required to participate in and benefit from group work – interpersonal skills, and group processing. This means that while teacher-coaches seem well-equipped to create learning environments that support reciprocal learning, they may benefit from challenging the role of the coach as an expert and tackle the preconceptions around cooperative behaviours that athletes bring from

Background: Sports supplements (SSs) are widely used among team sport athletes; however, evidence supporting the use of SSs among football referees at the elite level is scarce. The aim of the present study was to analyze the consumption of SSs among referees with respect to their level of competition and referee type (main referees (MRs) vs. assistant referees (ARs)). Methods: A total of 106 football referees participated in this study, with 46.2% from the First Spanish Division and 53.8% from the Second Spanish Division, representing 84.13% of the total number of referees. Each participant completed a validated questionnaire about SS consumption, with the SSs classified according to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) ABCD system: Group A has strong evidence for enhancing athlete health and performance, Group B shows potential benefits but needs more evidence, Group C has inconclusive evidence against use, and Group D includes prohibited substances. Results: A total of 84.0% of the MRs and ARs reported the consumption of at least one SS. Differences were found only in the consumption of medical supplements between division (p = 0.016) and type of referee (p = 0.041), though no significant differences were found among the remaining AIS SS categories (p > 0.05). Sport performance (49.6%), Internet (41.0%), and dietitian–nutritionists (31.7%) were the primary reason for SS consumption, purchase location, and source of information, respectively. The most frequently consumed SS were whey protein (45.3%), followed by creatine (33.0%), sport bars and sports drinks (28.3%), and caffeine (19.8%). Conclusions: MRs and ARs reported a high prevalence of dietary supplement (SS) consumption, with significant differences between division and referee type observed only in medical supplement consumption.

Post-activation potentiation is important to the field of strength and conditioning and athletics due to the possibility to elicit an increase in performance of the sport/activity. The purpose of this research study was to assess the efficacy of eliciting post-activation potentiation following a conditioning activity on the maximal running speed of male collegiate soccer players. 21 NCAA division I male soccer players performed supra-maximal quarter-squats as a conditioning activity prior to 2 max-effort sprints on the soccer field. Running speeds were measured using Sport Performance Traka GPS devices. 3 separate measurements compared the participants’ speeds which included a control measurement, 1 hour after conditioning activity, and 25 hours after conditioning activity. Data were analyzed by running a factorial ANOVA with repeated measures using SPSS to measure statistical significance (p < 0.05). The results did not reveal any statistical significance between the trials. Running speeds did not decrease after the conditioning activity of supra-maximal loaded quarter-squats, indicating no decrease in performance after heavy lifting. Future studies may wish to compare supra-maximal quarter-squats to explosive metrics in a more controlled laboratory setting.

As the top sport in the world without any doubt, soccer has a wide influence on human society. Since the beginning of modern soccer, soccer tactics have been developed for a long time. Clearly, it requires data for soccer analysis, which includes not only the match results between each team but also performance of players on the pitch. Playmaker.ai, where this degree project has been carried out, is a company that provides soccer analysis services. The major purpose of this project is to create a system that can generate player position by analyzing video data without bird-view information. Besides player position generation, some progress has been made in expected goal calculation and implemented some data preprocessing tools. In this project, the goal is accomplished in following steps: 1. Detect players from camera view images by using YOLO (You Only Look Once) network. 2. Use Strong-Sort method to track the position of players and ball in a long video. 3. Assign the teams to different detected object, methods including K-means are used in this step. 4. Generate bird view position by using perspective transformation method The result shows that all the machine model successfully converged and achieve good performance in practical usage, despite that there are still existing limitations and problems. By using this system, a 2-D map with player position on this map can be generated. And the data preprocessing tools can also be used for the company. Admittedly, because of several limitation in practical development, there are problems and disadvantage of the system. This system could be considered as a prototype of a complete method for solving multiple issues in soccer data analysis based on machine learning and computer vision. The future developers can iterate this project for further improvement., Som den bästa sporten i världen utan tvekan har fotboll ett stort inflytande på det mänskliga samhället. Sedan starten av modern fotboll har fotbollstaktik utvecklats under lång tid. Det kräver helt klart data för fotbollsanalys, som inte bara inkluderar matchresultaten mellan varje lag utan även spelarnas prestation på planen. Playmaker.ai, där jag gjorde det här examensarbetet, är ett företag som tillhandahåller fotbollsanalystjänster. Huvudsyftet med detta projekt är att skapa ett system som kan generera spelarposition genom att analysera videodata utan fågelvyinformation. Förutom spelarpositionsgenerering, gjorde jag också vissa framsteg i xG-beräkning och implementerade några verktyg för förbearbetning av data. I det här projektet uppnådde jag målet i följande steg: 1.Upptäck spelare från kameravisningsbilder genom att använda YOLOv5-nätverket. 2. Använd Strong-Sort-metoden för att spåra spelares och bollens position i en lång video. 3. Tilldela teamen till olika upptäckta objekt, metoder inklusive Kmeans används i detta steg. 4. Generera fågelvyposition genom att använda perspektivomvandlings-metoden. Resultatet visar att alla maskinmodeller framgångsrikt konvergerade och uppnår bra prestanda i praktisk användning, trots att det fortfarande finns begränsningar och problem. Genom att använda detta system kan vi framgångsrikt generera en 2D-karta med spelarposition på denna karta. Och verktygen för dataförbehandling kan också användas för företaget. Visserligen, på grund av flera begränsningar i praktisk utveckling, finns det problem och nackdelar med systemet. Detta system skulle kunna betraktas som en prototyp av en komplett metod för att lösa flera problem inom fotbollsdataanalys baserad på maskininlärning och datorseende. Den framtida utvecklaren kan upprepa detta projekt för att göra framsteg.

Producción Científica, Exercise can disrupt the fluid balance, hindering performance and athlete health. Limited data exist on fluid balance responses in varying climates, sexes, and ages. This study aimed to measure and compare fluid balance and urine values among elite soccer players during training at high and low temperatures, examining the differences between sexes, playing positions, and competitive levels within men’s soccer. During the 2022–2023 competitive season, a descriptive observational study was conducted on 87 soccer players from an elite Spanish soccer team. The study found that none of the groups exceeded weight loss values of 1.5% of their body mass. Additionally, the soccer players studied experienced higher weight loss, fluid intake, and a higher sweat rate (SR) during summer training compared to winter training. During the summer, male U23-21 soccer players exhibited higher levels of weight loss, fluid intake, and a higher SR compared to female soccer players or the U19-17 male category. No significant differences were found between playing positions. In conclusion, differences in the fluid balance were observed based on the climatic conditions, competitive level, and sex.

Producción Científica, Background: Classification of athletes in cerebral palsy (CP) football is a key action that aims to promote the participation of all players by minimizing the impact of their physical disabilities on the outcome of the competition by establishing sports classes. As such, a new research line has been included in the classification process at an international level; that is, the analysis of locomotor demands during competition helps classifiers to understand the para-footballers’ profile. Therefore, the main aim of this systematic review was to summarize the physical and physiological responses of players with CP in different sport classes during competition. Methods: A bibliographic search was conducted using PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web Of Science databases following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines using the PICOS strategy. Results: Six studies meeting inclusion criteria analyzing physical (i.e., total distances, distances at different speeds, high-intensity and short-term actions, change of directions, etc.) and physiological (heart rate (HR), time spent at different zones of maximum HR, etc.) responses. Findings revealed that para-footballers with CP and minimal impairment impact covered greater total and distance above 23.04 km·h−1 and achieved higher maximum speeds during match-play. Notably, no significant differences in physiological responses were observed based on classification. Conclusions: The research suggests that para-footballers with CP and lower physical impairment may exhibit enhanced performance in terms of distance covered and speed during gameplay, highlighting their potential competence in the sport. In addition, the limited number of studies examining the physiological response of para-footballers prevents conclusive results and differentiating between classification groups.

Introduction: Despite the unique act of actively using the head as part of the game in soccer, insufficient attention is paid to its potential harmful effects. There is an increased concern regarding head trauma in soccer and its impact both in the short- and long-term. Only a few studies have examined the ability of head protection to mitigate head trauma, and opinions differ regarding its effectiveness. Objective: The purpose of this project was to investigate the injury mechanisms behind concussions in soccer and its short- and long-term effect. Furthermore, the project aimed to evaluate the ability of head protection to protect against head impacts in soccer. Methods: Two finite element models of THUMS version 4.02 pedestrians were used to simulate head collisions between two players, with the aim of mimic an aerial duel in soccer. Different impact angles and impact points were simulated, after which worst case scenarios were selected for further evaluation with head protection. The kinematics of the head and the strains of the brain tissue were used to evaluate the head's response to impacts and to evaluate the effectiveness of head protection. Results: The study showed that the maximum strain of the brain tissue as well as the kinematics of the head were sensitive to the point of impact, while the angle of impact did not show any significant influence. Head protection showed a good ability to reduce the kinematics of the head and the strain of the brain tissue. A thicker head protector had an increased ability to reduce the max values and a low friction head protector had the capacity to further reduce the max values in certain types of impacts. Conclusion: Head protection showed promising ability to reduce head kinematics and the maximum strain of the brain tissue., Introduktion: Trots den unika handlingen av att aktivt använda huvudet som en del av spelet i fotboll, ägnas otillräcklig uppmärksamhet åt dess potentiella skadliga effekter. Det finns en ökad oro kring huvudtrauman inom fotboll och dess påverkan både på kort och lång sikt. Endast ett fåtal studier har undersökt huvudskydds förmåga att mildra huvudtrauman och olika åsikter råder angående dess effektivitet. Syfte: Syftet med detta projekt var att undersöka skademekanismerna bakom hjärnskakningar inom fotboll samt dess kort- och långsiktiga påverkan. Vidare ämnade projektet till att utvärdera ett huvudskydds förmåga att skydda vid huvudislag inom fotboll. Metoder: Två finita element modeller av THUMS version 4.02 fotgängarmodell användes för att simulera huvudkollisioner mellan två spelare, i syfte att imitera en luftduell i fotboll. Olika islagsvinklar och islagspunkter simulerades varpå värsta scenarier valdes för vidare utvärdering med huvudskydd. Huvudets kinematik samt töjningar av hjärnvävnaden användes för utvärdering av huvudets respons på islag samt för att undersöka huvudskydds effektivitet. Resultat: Studien visade att den maximala töjningen av hjärnvävnaden samt kinematiken av huvudet var känslig för islagspunkt medan islagsvinkeln inte visade på någon signifikant inverkan. Huvudskydd visade på god förmåga att reducera huvudets kinematik och töjningen av hjärnvävnaden. Ett tjockare huvudskydd hade en ökad förmåga att reducera maxvärdenaoch ett huvudskydd med låg friktion hade kapaciteten att reducera maxvärdena ytterligare vid vissa typer av islag.. Slutsats: Huvudskydd visade på lovande förmåga att reducera huvudets kinematik och den maximala töjningen av hjärnvävnaden.

Bakgrund: Ruscher är en vanlig aktion som fotbollsspelare utför under fotbollsmatcher. Flera studier har undersökt ruschers roll i diverse situationer på fotbollen med olika resultat. Däremot finns det en kunskapslucka då inga studier på amatörfotbollsspelare har identifierats. Syfte: Syftet med studien var att undersöka mängden rusher som herrfotbollsspelare genomför mellan tre olika lägre divisioner under ordinarie seriematchspel samt undersöka om mängden ruscher påverkar antalet gjorda mål. Metod: För datainsamlingen användes accelerometrar av modell Actigraph GT3X+. Datamaterialet från accelerometrarna laddades ned till excel i sekundformat. I Excel skapades ett program som räknade ut antal cykler på minst 4 sekunder med över 200 counts i rad. Datan analyserades genom Kruskal-Wallis samt med parvisa Mann-Whitney tester för att upptäcka skillnad mellan grupperna. För att se korrelationen mellan antal mål och antal ruscher genomfördes Spearmans korrelationstest. Resultat: Signifikanta skillnader i antal ruscher hittades mellan divisioner. Ingen signifikant korrelation hittades mellan gjorda mål och antal ruscher. Slutsats: Slutsatsen är att det finns skillnader mellan divisionerna i utförda ruscher. Division 3 och 5 genomför i snitt lika många ruscher, men division 5 spelare har en större variation mellan spelarna i mängden utförda ruscher. Resultatet för studien visar också att antal ruscher inte korrelerar med antal mål vilket kan indikera att det inte är antal ruscher som avgör mål, utan andra faktorer såsom kvalitet och hastighet på ruscherna., Background: Sprints is a regular action that football players perform during matches. Many studies have researched the variation of sprints in different football divisions with different results. There is no research found on sprint performance between amateur divisions in football which this study aims to research. Purpose: The purpose with this study was to compare the amount of sprints male football players carry out between three different lower Swedish football divisions during ordinary series matches. Adding to this, the study aims to also examine if the amount of sprints performed in matches is also affecting the amount of scored goals. Method: For the data collection, accelerometers of the model Actigraph GT3X was used. The data from the accelerometers were downloaded to excel in 1 second cycles. In excel a programme was created which counted the amount of cycles with at least 4 seconds with over 200 counts in a row. Data was analyzed through Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests to see if there was a significant difference between the groups. To see the correlation between the amount of goals and number of sprints the Spearman's correlation test was used. Results: Significant differences in the amount of sprints were found between divisions. No significant correlation could be found between scored goals and amount of sprints. Conclusion: The conclusion of the study is that there are differences between the divisions in performed sprints during matches. No significant differences were found between Division 3 and 5 players in the number of sprints performed, but division 5 players had a bigger variation in the amount of sprints performed. The result for the study also shows that the amount of sprints are not correlated with the amount of scored goals which can indicate that it is not the amount of sprints that is the deciding factor for goals but instead other factors like quality and speed off the sprints.

During the period of 2013-2022, there have been many interesting developments in the football industry in Europe. From accumulation of debt to disregarding the regulatory framework put in place by UEFA, football clubs have changed their capital structures to accommodate their financing needs. There has been previous research that has found a relationship between ownership structure and financial performance, but none that has explored how ownership structure affects debt and liquidity given current circumstances. The scope of this study was to ultimately determine how the capital structure and the liquidity is affected. This is a broad topic and the authors have covered several aspects within the field. However, there have been suggestions on further research regarding how one could go about valuating a football club as most of the football clubs in Europe have private ownership structures. In the end, the sample consists of 8,588 firm-year observations and adapts a longitudinal methodology. The tests carried out consist of OLS regressions as well as a multivariate regression. To be able to compare the different ownership structures, several regressions were made to put each ownership structure as the reference group. The authors of this thesis found that ownership affects debt and liquidity both individually and collectively. Therefore, answering the research question “What is the effect of ownership structure of football clubs in Europe on debt and liquidity?”. Football clubs in Europe have experienced low profitability, but rather high liquidity. The capital structures of said football clubs contain more debt than equity, where equity is negative in some cases. By comparing ownership structures, their effects on both debt and liquidity differentiate. This thesis contributes to already existing literature by contradicting Modigliani and Millers' assumption regarding bankruptcy costs. It also contributes practically to managers, investors, stakeholders, and regulat

The subject of this study is the psychosocial coach-player relationship (dyad) in Congolese soccer. The aim is to show how the quest for performance mobilizes different and complementary behaviors in the two players. The aim is to identify the specificity of this functional and reasoned relationship in terms of the link between, on the one hand, action priorities, coaches' attitudes and players' expectations and, on the other, these behaviours and sporting performance. To this end, a qualitative and comprehensive case study was conducted in Brazzaville from May 23 to August 13, 2023. The cases were represented by three soccer teams: Diables-Noirs, AC Léopards and FC Gothia, all affiliated to the Congolese Football Federation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with coaches (two per team) and players (five per team). Analysis of the verbatims identified three configurations of the coach-player relationship, which appear to be less conducive to optimal sports use in line with them. The quality of this relational process is influenced by a series of individual, group and organizational variables. In sum, the results obtained demonstrate the reliability of the psychosocial approach in understanding the factors around which the coach-player relationship is articulated in team sports in Congo.

The subject of this study is the psychosocial coach-player relationship (dyad) in Congolese soccer. The aim is to show how the quest for performance mobilizes different and complementary behaviors in the two players. The aim is to identify the specificity of this functional and reasoned relationship in terms of the link between, on the one hand, action priorities, coaches' attitudes and players' expectations and, on the other, these behaviours and sporting performance. To this end, a qualitative and comprehensive case study was conducted in Brazzaville from May 23 to August 13, 2023. The cases were represented by three soccer teams: Diables-Noirs, AC Léopards and FC Gothia, all affiliated to the Congolese Football Federation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with coaches (two per team) and players (five per team). Analysis of the verbatims identified three configurations of the coach-player relationship, which appear to be less conducive to optimal sports use in line with them. The quality of this relational process is influenced by a series of individual, group and organizational variables. In sum, the results obtained demonstrate the reliability of the psychosocial approach in understanding the factors around which the coach-player relationship is articulated in team sports in Congo.

The youth-to-first team phase presents a number of challenges in the careers of modern football players with stagnation, inconsistent performance and dropout being reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the perception of staff involved in professional academy football clubs around the globe, with a particular focus on youth and first team transition demands, resources as well as transitions barriers and coping among male academy football players. Participants from 29 male youth academies distributed across 29 countries took part in the survey. Our main findings suggested training and match intensity reported as being greater at the senior-level and also pressure from parents. The majority of respondents indicated their clubs having long-term strategy for player development and specific roles supporting successful player transitions. Exposure to different playing styles was deemed important to prepare players for the first team. Likewise, having the academy and the first team training on the same site was perceived to ease the transition, with the majority of respondents indicating that players are able to cope with the pressure of first team training and games. Perceptions on whether staff do not have the skills/resources to prepare players for the changes in environment and culture when players move from youth-to-senior level were unclear. Collectively, our study extends previous transition research on youth football academies suggesting the importance of a club-based playing philosophy to prepare players for the first team demands and challenges.

The youth-to-first team phase presents a number of challenges in the careers of modern football players with stagnation, inconsistent performance and dropout being reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the perception of staff involved in professional academy football clubs around the globe, with a particular focus on youth and first team transition demands, resources as well as transitions barriers and coping among male academy football players. Participants from 29 male youth academies distributed across 29 countries took part in the survey. Our main findings suggested training and match intensity reported as being greater at the senior-level and also pressure from parents. The majority of respondents indicated their clubs having long-term strategy for player development and specific roles supporting successful player transitions. Exposure to different playing styles was deemed important to prepare players for the first team. Likewise, having the academy and the first team training on the same site was perceived to ease the transition, with the majority of respondents indicating that players are able to cope with the pressure of first team training and games. Perceptions on whether staff do not have the skills/resources to prepare players for the changes in environment and culture when players move from youth-to-senior level were unclear. Collectively, our study extends previous transition research on youth football academies suggesting the importance of a club-based playing philosophy to prepare players for the first team demands and challenges.

During the period of 2013-2022, there have been many interesting developments in the football industry in Europe. From accumulation of debt to disregarding the regulatory framework put in place by UEFA, football clubs have changed their capital structures to accommodate their financing needs. There has been previous research that has found a relationship between ownership structure and financial performance, but none that has explored how ownership structure affects debt and liquidity given current circumstances. The scope of this study was to ultimately determine how the capital structure and the liquidity is affected. This is a broad topic and the authors have covered several aspects within the field. However, there have been suggestions on further research regarding how one could go about valuating a football club as most of the football clubs in Europe have private ownership structures. In the end, the sample consists of 8,588 firm-year observations and adapts a longitudinal methodology. The tests carried out consist of OLS regressions as well as a multivariate regression. To be able to compare the different ownership structures, several regressions were made to put each ownership structure as the reference group. The authors of this thesis found that ownership affects debt and liquidity both individually and collectively. Therefore, answering the research question “What is the effect of ownership structure of football clubs in Europe on debt and liquidity?”. Football clubs in Europe have experienced low profitability, but rather high liquidity. The capital structures of said football clubs contain more debt than equity, where equity is negative in some cases. By comparing ownership structures, their effects on both debt and liquidity differentiate. This thesis contributes to already existing literature by contradicting Modigliani and Millers' assumption regarding bankruptcy costs. It also contributes practically to managers, investors, stakeholders, and regulat

Although the works coming from the social studies of Argentine sport have increased in recent years, their approach to the issue of gender has not dealt in depth with mixed modalities of play. Aspiring to make a contribution in this sense, this article aims to compare two amateur and contact practices: quadball, a new activity that has been practiced in Argentina since 2006, and 5-a-side soccer, represented in the experience of recreational circuits of the city of La Plata. From an ethnographic approach, recovering observations in competitive, friendly and social instances, and interviews with athletes, we pay attention to the relationships that are built in them between practitioners of different genders, regulations and the role of institutionalization. We conclude that, while in quadball we observe a reproduction, sometimes nuanced, of the meanings and constructions of the sport as an area of ​​male dominance, in 5-a-side football these links include challenges to social gender mandates., Embora os trabalhos provenientes dos estudos sociais do desporto argentino tenham aumentado nos últimos anos, a sua abordagem à questão do género não abordou em profundidade as modalidades mistas de jogo. Buscando contribuir nesse sentido, este artigo tem como objetivo comparar duas práticas amadoras e de contato: o quadball, atividade nova praticada na Argentina desde 2006, e o futebol de 5, representado na experiência dos circuitos recreativos de a cidade de La Plata. A partir de uma abordagem etnográfica, recuperando observações em instâncias competitivas, amigáveis ​​e sociais, e entrevistas com atletas, atentamos para as relações que neles se constroem entre praticantes de diferentes géneros, as regulamentações e o papel da institucionalização. Concluímos que, enquanto no quadball observamos uma reprodução, por vezes matizada, dos significados e construções do desporto como área de dominação masculina, no futebol de 5 estas ligações incluem desafios aos mandatos sociais de género., Si bien los trabajos provenientes de los estudios sociales del deporte argentino se han incrementado en los últimos años, su abordaje de la temática del género no ha tratado en profundidad las modalidades de juego mixto. Aspirando a realizar un aporte en este sentido, este artículo tiene como objetivo comparar dos prácticas amateurs y de contacto: el quadball, una actividad novedosa que se practica en Argentina desde 2006, y el fútbol 5, representado en la experiencia de los circuitos recreativos de la ciudad de La Plata. Desde un enfoque etnográfico, recuperando observaciones en instancias competitivas, amistosas y sociales, y entrevistas a deportistas, ponemos atención en las relaciones que se construyen en ellas entre los practicantes de distinto género, las reglamentaciones y el papel de la institucionalización. Concluimos que, mientras que en el quadball se observa una reproducción, a veces matizada, de sentidos y construcciones propias del deporte en tanto ámbito de dominio masculino, en el fútbol 5 estos vínculos incluyen desafíos a los mandatos sociales de género.

Independiente del Valle burst into Ecuadorian professional soccer in 2007 with a mission: to do things differently. Today, 16 years later, the team is a national and regional benchmark on how to manage a club from a business and disruptive perspective, in a complex and conventional industry such as football. “A different club” is the slogan used by the team in their messages on social networks. Through the following pages, the intention is to show how the Ecuadorian club adopted new paths and approaches to be different. Institutionally, in sports and in the ways of communicating and positioning itself as a brand., Independiente del Valle irrumpió en el fútbol profesional ecuatoriano en 2007 con una misión: hacer las cosas de una forma diferente. “Un club diferente” es, precisamente, el eslogan que utiliza el equipo en sus mensajes en redes sociales. Hoy, dieciséis años después, el equipo es una referencia nacional y regional de cómo gestionar un club desde la perspectiva empresarial y disruptiva, en una industria compleja y convencional como la del balompié. La intención de este ensayo es mostrar cómo el club ecuatoriano adoptó nuevos caminos y enfoques para ser diferente en lo institucional, en lo deportivo y también en las formas de comunicar y posicionarse como marca.

Talent development environments are usually group-based, meaning athletes comprise each other’s learning context. Consequently, athletes’ ability to learn with and from each other is essential. This implies that there is a key role for coaches to play in cultivating reciprocal, cooperative athletes and creating talent environments in which participants can ‘learn to learn’. The aim of this study was to create knowledge on day-to-day coaching conduct that supports the development of athletes’ reciprocal abilities. Observations of 75 h of football (soccer) lessons within the Swedish Football Association’s school sports programme – a cornerstone of the FA’s talent development system, located in upper secondary schools – were carried out over the course of three school semesters, and included in-depth interviews with the teacher-coaches. Data were analysed using the five key teaching pillars within a cooperative learning approach: positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction, interpersonal skills and group processing. Findings show how teacher-coaches engage in activities that focus on organization of lessons and structuring of group work to create situations where individuals are motivated to learn, but also motivated to support other group members’ learning. Thereby, teacher-coaches place more emphasis on positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction. In contrast, findings also show how teacher-coaches to a lesser extent perform coaching conduct associated with lesson content that has the potential to develop the skills and abilities required to participate in and benefit from group work – interpersonal skills, and group processing. This means that while teacher-coaches seem well-equipped to create learning environments that support reciprocal learning, they may benefit from challenging the role of the coach as an expert and tackle the preconceptions around cooperative behaviours that athletes bring from

Similar to conventional football, the modality dedicated to footballers with cerebral palsy (CP) requires referees who cope with the physical demands imposed during competitive matches to apply the rules of the game. While a significant body of research has explored the physical demands on referees in mainstream football, there is a noticeable lack of data regarding CP football. This study aimed to examine the physical response of international referees participating in different levels of world competitions for footballers with CP. Thirteen international referees, who officiated 49 matches in the men’s 2022 World Cup (1st to 15th ranked teams) and 2022 World Championships (16th to 30th ranked teams), participated in this study. A cross-sectional design was used to determine the physical responses and compare the 1st and 2nd halves and the performance in the different tournaments, recording physical variables throughout the matches. Significant higher physical responses were observed in the World Cup in comparison to the World Championship. Overall, high-level tournaments have been shown to elicit more intense physical responses from referees officiating CP football matches compared to lower-level tournaments. For the World Cup, a significantly higher number of accelerations and decelerations were registered in the 1st half compared to the 2nd half. This information may be useful for the strength and conditioning coaches of referees to plan weekly training sessions more specifically and adjust the periodical training load and post-match recovery protocols.

Background: Currently, the fusion of technology and sports is inevitable. The integration of various systems and devices has brought about significant transformations in established sports practices, impacting not only the rules but also physiological, biomechanical, and even psychological aspects. Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of an attention intervention through a video game on young soccer players. Methods: Twelve young male soccer players (age: mean 8.5, SD 1 years) were divided into 2 groups: a control group (CG; n=10) and an experimental group (EG; n=10). During the 6-week training program, the EG received attention training through a video game twice a week for 15 minutes per session. Pre- and postintervention measurements included a specific decision-making soccer test and interviews with coaching staff. Additionally, success in the video game, muscular activity, and sweat levels were monitored. Results: The EG demonstrated a significant improvement in video game success following the intervention program, as indicated by the achieved level (P<.001). However, no significant differences were found between groups regarding electromyographic (EMG) activity (P=.21) and sweating (P=.20). Prior to implementing the attention training program, both groups exhibited similar data for variables related to decision-making and execution mechanisms (≤10%). Only 2 decision-making variables exceeded 10% but remained below 15% (Shot_D=13.35%; Marking_with_Ball_D=−12.64%). Furthermore, changes in attacking action variables were more pronounced in execution-related variables, except for dribbling and fixing. Conversely, in defensive action variables, changes were greater in decision-related variables, except for marking with the ball and marking without the ball. Conclusions: Our findings reveal that incorporating a specific attentional video game into a soccer training program enhances decision-making compared to a program without the video ga

The subject of this study is the psychosocial coach-player relationship (dyad) in Congolese soccer. The aim is to show how the quest for performance mobilizes different and complementary behaviors in the two players. The aim is to identify the specificity of this functional and reasoned relationship in terms of the link between, on the one hand, action priorities, coaches' attitudes and players' expectations and, on the other, these behaviours and sporting performance. To this end, a qualitative and comprehensive case study was conducted in Brazzaville from May 23 to August 13, 2023. The cases were represented by three soccer teams: Diables-Noirs, AC Léopards and FC Gothia, all affiliated to the Congolese Football Federation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with coaches (two per team) and players (five per team). Analysis of the verbatims identified three configurations of the coach-player relationship, which appear to be less conducive to optimal sports use in line with them. The quality of this relational process is influenced by a series of individual, group and organizational variables. In sum, the results obtained demonstrate the reliability of the psychosocial approach in understanding the factors around which the coach-player relationship is articulated in team sports in Congo.

Background: Currently, the fusion of technology and sports is inevitable. The integration of various systems and devices has brought about significant transformations in established sports practices, impacting not only the rules but also physiological, biomechanical, and even psychological aspects. Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of an attention intervention through a video game on young soccer players. Methods: Twelve young male soccer players (age: mean 8.5, SD 1 years) were divided into 2 groups: a control group (CG; n=10) and an experimental group (EG; n=10). During the 6-week training program, the EG received attention training through a video game twice a week for 15 minutes per session. Pre- and postintervention measurements included a specific decision-making soccer test and interviews with coaching staff. Additionally, success in the video game, muscular activity, and sweat levels were monitored. Results: The EG demonstrated a significant improvement in video game success following the intervention program, as indicated by the achieved level (P<.001). However, no significant differences were found between groups regarding electromyographic (EMG) activity (P=.21) and sweating (P=.20). Prior to implementing the attention training program, both groups exhibited similar data for variables related to decision-making and execution mechanisms (≤10%). Only 2 decision-making variables exceeded 10% but remained below 15% (Shot_D=13.35%; Marking_with_Ball_D=−12.64%). Furthermore, changes in attacking action variables were more pronounced in execution-related variables, except for dribbling and fixing. Conversely, in defensive action variables, changes were greater in decision-related variables, except for marking with the ball and marking without the ball. Conclusions: Our findings reveal that incorporating a specific attentional video game into a soccer training program enhances decision-making compared to a program without the video ga

Talent development environments are usually group-based, meaning athletes comprise each other’s learning context. Consequently, athletes’ ability to learn with and from each other is essential. This implies that there is a key role for coaches to play in cultivating reciprocal, cooperative athletes and creating talent environments in which participants can ‘learn to learn’. The aim of this study was to create knowledge on day-to-day coaching conduct that supports the development of athletes’ reciprocal abilities. Observations of 75 h of football (soccer) lessons within the Swedish Football Association’s school sports programme – a cornerstone of the FA’s talent development system, located in upper secondary schools – were carried out over the course of three school semesters, and included in-depth interviews with the teacher-coaches. Data were analysed using the five key teaching pillars within a cooperative learning approach: positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction, interpersonal skills and group processing. Findings show how teacher-coaches engage in activities that focus on organization of lessons and structuring of group work to create situations where individuals are motivated to learn, but also motivated to support other group members’ learning. Thereby, teacher-coaches place more emphasis on positive interdependence, individual accountability, face-to-face interaction. In contrast, findings also show how teacher-coaches to a lesser extent perform coaching conduct associated with lesson content that has the potential to develop the skills and abilities required to participate in and benefit from group work – interpersonal skills, and group processing. This means that while teacher-coaches seem well-equipped to create learning environments that support reciprocal learning, they may benefit from challenging the role of the coach as an expert and tackle the preconceptions around cooperative behaviours that athletes bring from

This study examines the case of Soft Hooligans and their significance in the supporter culture. The study aims to highlight the patriarchal structures exemplified by football stands and how Soft Hooligans dismantle these structures. The study is based on a qualitative case-study, using the multimodal analysis method and drawing upon theories of feminization of sports fans, masculinity, fan culture, participatory culture and social rituals. The empirical material primarily consists of media from Soft Hooligans Facebook group, but also includes articles from Swedish newspapers. We ask the questions who they are and what they represent, what social rituals they exercise and the significance of social media for these rituals, and how we may understand the resistance they encounter from other supporters. The analysis concludes that Soft Hooligans could be interpreted to represent a shift in the supporterculture to a softer, warmer and more welcoming culture. The analysis also concludes that Facebook plays a crucial role in Soft Hooligans practices as well as for their fan culture. Lastly, the study also concludes that Soft Hooligans could be interpreted as a threat to the masculinity of sports culture and the resistance may thus be an attempt to maintain dominance.

Producción Científica, This study breaks new ground by examining determinants of away fan travel in a professional football league. Using data from two consecutive seasons of the Spanish league, a gravity model is estimated based on a three-dimensional panel to discuss the effects of a number of factors that influence the flows of away fans. Results evidence the importance of factors such as distance between locations, the day or time the match is played, and uncertainty concerning the visiting team’s current form. Joint interpretation of all these factors by the clubs and by those organising the competition may help to reshape their management strategies, which would result in increased flows of away supporters and an increase in sports clubs’ revenues from this concept.

Este Trabajo de Fin de Grado presenta la creación de un plan de comunicación a través de redes sociales para el deportista de élite Antonio Moya Vega, más conocido como Toni Moya. A la hora de mejorar y profesionalizar la comunicación, es clave poseer una estructura y acciones comunicativas marcadas, y por ello, se ha elaborado esta planificación con el objetivo de dar a conocer al futbolista y hacerlo crecer en el mundo de las redes sociales durante la temporada 2023/2024. En este plan de comunicación se ha realizado un análisis situacional de las estrategias comunicativas utilizadas hasta el momento en las redes sociales de Toni Moya, tanto interno -debilidades y fortalezas- como externo -amenazas y oportunidades-. Con esta información se han definido las acciones, calendarizando los pasos a seguir en la comunicación exterior del jugador con sus seguidores durante la próxima campaña deportiva con el fin de crear la Comunidad Toni Moya para explotar tres redes sociales: Twitter, Instagram y TikTok. Además, este proyecto profesional de fin de carrera se ha centrado en una referencia real de un jugador de fútbol que actualmente milita en el Deportivo Alavés de la LigaSmartBank, Segunda División española, y se ha intentado dejar clara la importancia que ha adquirido en la actualidad la comunicación a través de las redes sociales en el mundo del deporte de alto rendimiento., This Final Degree Project shows the development of a communication plan through social networks for the elite athlete Antonio Moya Vega, better known as Toni Moya. To improve and professionalize communication, it is key to have a structure and marked communicative actions, and therefore, this planning has been developed with the aim of making the footballer more known and making him grow in the world of social networks during the season 2023/2024. In this communication plan, a situational analysis of the communication strategies used so far in Toni Moya ́s social networks has been carried out, both internal - weaknesses and strengths- and external -threats and opportunities-. With all this information, the actions have been defined, scheduling the steps to follow in the external communication of the player with his followers during the next sports season in order to create the Toni Moya Community to exploit three social networks: Twitter, Instagram & TikTok. In addition, this professional Final Degree Project has focused on a real reference of a football player who currently plays for Deportivo Alavés of the SmartBank League, Spanish Second Division, and has tried to make clear the importance that communication through social networks has acquired today in the world of high performance sport., Departamento de Historia Moderna, Contemporánea y de América, Periodismo y Comunicación Audiovisual y Publicidad, Grado en Periodismo

Producción Científica, The aim of this study was to explore how situational variables affect youth soccer players’ perceived exertion (RPE) after official matches. Thirty-five elite youth male players (14.33 ± 0.86 years; 173.49 ± 6.16 cm; 63.44 ± 5.98 kg) who belonged to two different teams of a professional club participated in this study. Data collection was conducted during two seasons (2016–2017, 2017–2018) and included 60 official matches (30 official matches per team). Ten minutes after each match players rated their RPE and using a modified Borg CR-10 scale. A Random Forest Regression was used to quantify the importance of match-related situational variables in RPE. Afterwards, a linear mixed model analysis was applied to identify the variability in RPE among the situational variables. The game-playing time, the player status (starter or substitute) and the player identity were the strongest predictors of RPE. Moreover, the match outcome and the final scoreline showed significant effects on both starter and substitute players but the main effect of the quality of the opponent was only identified in starter players (p < 0.05). These results allow practitioners to know how situational variables interact and modulate RPE after official matches and help them to prescribe and adapt the players’ training content and load before and after matches.

In The Ripple Effect: Gender and Race in Brazilian Culture and Literature, Barbosa adopts a comparative, multilayered, and interdisciplinary line of research to examine social values and cultural mores from the first decades of the twentieth century to the present. By analyzing the historical, cultural, religious, and interactive space of Brazil’s national identity, The Ripple Effect surveys expressive cultures and literary manifestations. It uses the martial art-dance-ritual capoeira as a lynchpin to disclose historical ambiguities and the negotiation of cultural and literary boundaries within the context of the ideological construct of a mestizo nation. The book also examines laws governing gender in Brazil and discusses honor killings and other types of violence against women. The Ripple Effect appraises the contributions that some iconic female figures have made to the development of Brazil’s distinctive cultural and literary production. Drawing on more than fifteen years of field, archival, and scholarly research, this work offers new interpretative venues, and broadens the critical focus and the methodological scope of previous scholarship. It reveals how literature and other arts can be used to document cultural norms, catalog life experiences, and analyze complex constructions of social values, ideas, and belief systems., https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/psrl/1009/thumbnail.jpg

In The Ripple Effect: Gender and Race in Brazilian Culture and Literature, Barbosa adopts a comparative, multilayered, and interdisciplinary line of research to examine social values and cultural mores from the first decades of the twentieth century to the present. By analyzing the historical, cultural, religious, and interactive space of Brazil’s national identity, The Ripple Effect surveys expressive cultures and literary manifestations. It uses the martial art-dance-ritual capoeira as a lynchpin to disclose historical ambiguities and the negotiation of cultural and literary boundaries within the context of the ideological construct of a mestizo nation. The book also examines laws governing gender in Brazil and discusses honor killings and other types of violence against women. The Ripple Effect appraises the contributions that some iconic female figures have made to the development of Brazil’s distinctive cultural and literary production. Drawing on more than fifteen years of field, archival, and scholarly research, this work offers new interpretative venues, and broadens the critical focus and the methodological scope of previous scholarship. It reveals how literature and other arts can be used to document cultural norms, catalog life experiences, and analyze complex constructions of social values, ideas, and belief systems., https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/psrl/1009/thumbnail.jpg

Russia's war against Ukraine has accelerated international competition for influence in Africa. Structural weaknesses and post-pandemic instabilities continue to threaten achievements in the fields of democratic governance, peace and security, as well as development. We present a select list and analysis of "ten things to watch" in Africa in 2023. Politics: Democratic quality will depend on the nature of polls, as the electoral calendar is heavily packed. Important general elections that could trigger social unrest are scheduled in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe. Peace and security: Against the backdrop of continued structural-conflict risks, Jihadism and related ethno-regional tensions pose a major security challenge that may spill over to neighbouring states, especially from the Sahel to West African coastal countries. The recent ceasefire in Ethiopia's Tigray Region could be a first positive step towards peace. International arena: Amid Russia's war against Ukraine, many African governments were reluctant to join the international coalition condemning the Putin regime. Continued Western pressure on African countries to isolate Russia fosters African agency. At the same time, we expect to see an intensifying "new scramble for Africa" that includes both China and Middle Eastern countries. Socio-economic development: African countries will slowly rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic's socio-economic effects, but high poverty, inequality, and government debt hamper economic growth. Progress on joint efforts to counter the climate crisis remains slow. Western support for African countries in their struggle for democracy, peace and security, as well as development requires a "new start" that focuses on prevention rather than ad hoc responses to current crises. The European Union and United States should avoid lapsing into Cold War habits of only assisting African governments if they "break away" from Russia. Germany needs to formulate a sound

Background: Fitness testing is utilized by numerous soccer programs as a means for evaluation of player physical capacity. Previous literature has shown Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 1 (YYIR1) performance is associated with match physical performance in elite adult and youth soccer players. Until now, these relationships have not been investigated in the collegiate soccer setting, despite the YYIR1 being regularly utilized at the collegiate level to determine eligibility for competition, influence playing time, and to assess adaptation to training programs. For these reasons the association between the YYIR1 and match physical performance was investigated in women’s collegiate soccer. Aims: 1) To investigate the association between the YYIR1 and match physical performance in collegiate female soccer players. 2) To expand on existing YYIR1 performance and match physical performance data in this population. Methods: Baseline YYIR1 performance scores, GPS match data, and confounding factors data were collected for two competitive seasons. A linear mixed model was used to assess the relationship between baseline YYIR1 performance and match total distance (TD), high-intensity running distance (HIRD), and sprint distance (SD) metrics, while adjusting for potential confounding factors. Hypothesis: Increased YYIR1 performance is associated with increased match TD, HIRD, and SD when confounding factors are adjusted for. Results: The mean YYIR1 baseline score was 33.1 ± 5.3 levels (1323 ± 211m). Mean match physical performance values for TD, HIRD, and SD were 107.7±12, 7.84±3.34, and 1.63±1.1 m/min, respectively. Linear mixed model results demonstrated that an increase in YYIR1 performance by one level is associated with increases in match physical performance of 0.95 (0.257 - 1.651) m/min, 0.27 (0.138 - 0.405) m/min, and 0.05 (0.002 - 0.095) m/min for TD, HIRD, and SD, respectively. Discussion: Increased performance in the YYIR1 is associated with an increase in mat

Since its national debut in 1987, Fresh Air with Terry Gross has been a highly acclaimed and much adored weekday magazine among public radio listeners. Each week, nearly 4.8 million people turn to Peabody Award-winning host Terry Gross for insightful conversations with the leading voices in contemporary arts and issues. The renowned program reaches a global audience, with over 620 public radio stations broadcasting Fresh Air, and 3 million podcast downloads each week. Fresh Air has broken the mold of 'talk show' by weaving together superior journalism and intimate storytelling from modern-day intellectuals, politicians and artists alike. Through probing questions and careful research, Gross's interviews are lauded for revealing a fresh perspective on cultural icons and trends. Her thorough conversations are often complemented by commentary from well-known contributors. Fresh Air is produced at WHYY-FM in Philadelphia and broadcast nationally by NPR., (1.) Actor and writer BRETT GOLDSTEIN ["steen"]. He stars as Roy Kent, a British footballer in the Apple TV plus series "Ted Lasso." He's won an emmy for best supporting role twice for his performance. GOLDSTEIN also writes for the show, and he co-created the TV series "Shrinking," which stars Jason Segel, Harrison Ford, and Jessica Williams. (INTERVIEW BY ANNEMARIE BALDONADO) (THIS INTERVIEW CONTINUES INTO THE SECOND HALF OF THE SHOW). (2.) Critic JUSTIN CHANG reviews "Tori & Lokita," the new film by film directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne (Dar-DEN). The movie, which won a prize at last year's Cannes Film Festival, tells the story of two African refugee children struggling to survive in present-day Belgium.

Aunque la identidad atlética y el motivo de retiro se consideran variables claves para comprender el retiro deportivo, existen resultados contradictorios con respecto a su relación con la satisfacción con la vida y sus posibles implicaciones en una vivencia negativa del retiro. En este estudio participaron 108 futbolistas retirados del fútbol profesional inglés quienes respondieron a la Athletic Identity Measurement Scale y la Satisfaction with Life Scale. Los resultados fueron analizados a través de pruebas de contraste de hipótesis y correlaciones bivariadas. No se hallaron diferencias significativas entre los grupos, pero el análisis correlacional sugiere que la relación entre estas variables cambia en función del motivo de retiro. Se discuten las implicaciones de estas diferencias tanto en la experiencia y preparación del retiro como en posibles intervenciones posterior a éste., While Athletic identity and the different reasons for sports retirement have been considered key variables to understand how athletes cope with sports career termination, the relationship between these and life satisfaction remains inconclusive. A total of 108 male individuals retired from English professional football (soccer) were part of this study. Their answers to the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale and the Satisfaction with Life Scale were analyzed through statistical hypotheses tests and bivariate correlations. Although no statistical differences were found between the groups, correlational analyses suggest that the relationship between athletic identity and life satisfaction changes depending on the reason for retirement. The implications of these findings in the development of interventions for athletes near to retire is discussed.

Football (soccer) penalty kicks can be a deciding force regarding match outcomes. Based on match data from 2014 to 2022 of the five biggest European leagues, their domestic cups, and UEFA competitions, we created a dataset of 5395 penalty kick observations with 135 features specific to the penalty taker, the goalkeeper, the match, and the participating teams. We built two logistic regression models and a random forest model to compare and analyze their predictive power of forecasting the outcome of football penalty kicks. The random forest model achieved higher accuracy, precision, and ROC-AUC values than the logistic regression models. The most important variables in the model were shot-creating actions, goal-creating actions, expected goals, expected assists, and non-penalty expected goals, all as yearly means over player totals. To improve model performance, it is likely that higher-quality data and features are needed., Jaromir Gruber, BSc, Masterarbeit Universität Innsbruck 2023

Gender equity in community football organisations remains elusive despite national and international moves to address this through legislation, reports, and strategies focusing on gender diversity and inclusion. This research demonstrates that we are in the position we are today because in their attempts to promote gender equity, national sports organisations and Sport NZ (in its current and previous incarnations) have essentially placed all their emphasis on devising and implementing policy. This approach has produced, at best, symbolic equality. While we have seen some progress in this space, there is much more to do for a sustained change in attitudes and behaviour towards gender diversity and inclusion to achieve gender equity within community sports organisations. Historically, this research shows that legislation and policies are a fairly blunt instrument for changing behaviour, because while they are important statements of what governments and organisations believe, this has not translated into practice. This research provides a historical analysis of this issue, by tracing the history of women’s involvement in community football organisations in Aotearoa NZ within the wider context of women’s involvement in sports organisations, and with reference to the scholarly literature on the history of women’s sport. It discusses the academic literature on gender diversity and inclusion in sport at micro-, meso-, and macro-levels, and draws on analyses of previous frameworks to conceptualise and create a new model, the Belonging and Equity Model. I adopted a relativist ontological approach, a social constructionist epistemology, underpinned by post-structural feminism. Taking a holistic approach, I used a multi-disciplinary methodology, mixed data collection methods and multiple sources of evidence that focused on converting theories and research into practicable tools for community football organisations to use. I applied a qualitative approach, using case study and

Talent identification and talent development often depend on interconnected variables, such as the athlete’s environment, maturation, the roles of stakeholders, and relationships created and maintained throughout both processes. Talent identification and development require significant resources and finances dedicated to searching for and developing athletes. This qualitative study examines the factors influencing talent identification and talent development processes for youth-aged soccer players in Canada. Insights about talent identification and development were gathered from 16 youth soccer coaches with experiences across different stages of the talent development pathway. Each coach participating in the study took part in a semi-structured interview addressing their awareness of talent identification and talent development processes in Canadian youth soccer, their experiences within its talent development environment, and the challenges/solutions they see to improve the number of talented youth soccer players A thematic analysis process was used to gain insights and identify themes from the interviews. Participants identified different perspectives on talent, talent identification, and talent development. The results of this study demonstrate an inequitable talent identification and development system, which is limited by athletes’ place of birth, socio-economic status, and access to necessary resources. To address the identified constraints, coaches participating in this study recommend: 1) improving access to youth soccer, 2) not driving talent identification and talent development processes on pay-for-play or profit models, 3) prioritizing the social-emotional well-being of children and youth athletes, 4) having a clear definition of talent, talent identification, and talent development, and 5) investing to build system capacity and eliminate inequities.

Purpose & Questions The purpose of the study was to examine Swedish football youth national teams at the age of 15 to be able to identify how many later goes on to play professionally. In addition to this the study also aimed to examine the birth dates of the topical players to see if a relative age effect could have any impact. Question 1: How many players from the initial (15 years old) Swedish football youth national team born between 1992-2002 played professionally at the age of 20. Question 2: At which professional level did the actual players play at 20 years of age. Question 3: Which type of association did the players belong to at the age of 15. Question 4: Is the relative age effect occurring in Swedish football youth national teams. Method The study was carried out through a quantitative collection of historical data regarding Swedish football youth national teams. The data was collected from the Swedish football federations own digital website. In total 197 individuals from 11 different cohorts were examined regarding their date of birth and their club at 20 years of age as well as 15 years of age. Results The results from the study showed that a total of 53,8% of the players played professionally at the age of 20. Of the players examined a total of 62,9% played in a professional association at the age of 15. The results from the study also showed that there was a significant (x2 = 59,65) difference between the number of players born in the first quarter of the year in comparison to the last. Conclusion The study showed that the total number of players playing in the youth national teams and then playing professional at 20 years of age to be 53,6%. This can be compared to other nations where the percentages are often lower. However there seems to be elements of relative age effect regarding the selection of players possibly leading to potential and talent going to waste. Therefore better methods regarding talent identification without the influence of, Syfte och frågeställningar Syftet med studien var att undersöka svenska ungdomslandslag i fotboll vid 15-års ålder för att identifiera hur många spelare som senare i sina idrottsliga karriärer spelar på elitnivå. Vidare ville studien även undersöka ifall den relativa ålderseffekten verkade vara förekommande inom uttagning för svenska ungdomslandslag i fotboll. Frågeställning 1: Hur många spelare uttagna till premiärlandslaget (15 år) i fotboll födda mellan 1992–2002 nådde elitnivå vid 20-års ålder. Frågeställning 2: Vilken nivå nådde spelarna som vid 20-års ålder tillhörde en elitförening. Frågeställning 3: Vilka typ av förening tillhörde aktuella spelare vid 15-års ålder Frågeställning 4: Är den relativa ålderseffekten förekommande inom svensk ungdomslandslagsfotboll Metod Studien genomfördes genom en kvantitativ insamling utav historiska data från Sveriges ungdomslandslag i fotboll. Den data undersökningen efterfrågade samlades in från det svenska fotbollförbundets egen webb-portal. Totalt undersöktes landslagsverksamhet vid 15-års ålder för sammanlagt 11 enskilda årskullar, totalt så kartlades 197 individer vad gäller födelsedatum och klubbtillhörighet vid 15- samt 20 års ålder. Resultat Studiens resultat visade att utav de totalt 197 undersökta individerna tillhörde 106 (53,8%) en förening på elitnivå vid 20-års ålder. Utav de 197 undersökta individerna tillhörde även 124 (62,9%) en förening på elitnivå vid 15-års ålder. Studien visade även att utav de 197 individerna som blivit uttagna vid 15-års ålder finns det en signifikant (x2 = 59,65) överrepresentation utav spelare födda under årets första kvartal jämfört med årets sista. Slutsats Studien har visat resultat kring hur många spelare som vid 15-års ålder tillhör Sveriges ungdomslandslag i fotboll och sedan tillhör elitnivå vid 20-års ålder att vara 53,8% utav alla utvalda. Detta kan ställas i paritet med andra nationer där snittet är lägre. Dock framgår det att det verkar förekomma inslag utav relativ ålders

Purpose & Questions The purpose of the study was to examine Swedish football youth national teams at the age of 15 to be able to identify how many later goes on to play professionally. In addition to this the study also aimed to examine the birth dates of the topical players to see if a relative age effect could have any impact. Question 1: How many players from the initial (15 years old) Swedish football youth national team born between 1992-2002 played professionally at the age of 20. Question 2: At which professional level did the actual players play at 20 years of age. Question 3: Which type of association did the players belong to at the age of 15. Question 4: Is the relative age effect occurring in Swedish football youth national teams. Method The study was carried out through a quantitative collection of historical data regarding Swedish football youth national teams. The data was collected from the Swedish football federations own digital website. In total 197 individuals from 11 different cohorts were examined regarding their date of birth and their club at 20 years of age as well as 15 years of age. Results The results from the study showed that a total of 53,8% of the players played professionally at the age of 20. Of the players examined a total of 62,9% played in a professional association at the age of 15. The results from the study also showed that there was a significant (x2 = 59,65) difference between the number of players born in the first quarter of the year in comparison to the last. Conclusion The study showed that the total number of players playing in the youth national teams and then playing professional at 20 years of age to be 53,6%. This can be compared to other nations where the percentages are often lower. However there seems to be elements of relative age effect regarding the selection of players possibly leading to potential and talent going to waste. Therefore better methods regarding talent identification without the influence of, Syfte och frågeställningar Syftet med studien var att undersöka svenska ungdomslandslag i fotboll vid 15-års ålder för att identifiera hur många spelare som senare i sina idrottsliga karriärer spelar på elitnivå. Vidare ville studien även undersöka ifall den relativa ålderseffekten verkade vara förekommande inom uttagning för svenska ungdomslandslag i fotboll. Frågeställning 1: Hur många spelare uttagna till premiärlandslaget (15 år) i fotboll födda mellan 1992–2002 nådde elitnivå vid 20-års ålder. Frågeställning 2: Vilken nivå nådde spelarna som vid 20-års ålder tillhörde en elitförening. Frågeställning 3: Vilka typ av förening tillhörde aktuella spelare vid 15-års ålder Frågeställning 4: Är den relativa ålderseffekten förekommande inom svensk ungdomslandslagsfotboll Metod Studien genomfördes genom en kvantitativ insamling utav historiska data från Sveriges ungdomslandslag i fotboll. Den data undersökningen efterfrågade samlades in från det svenska fotbollförbundets egen webb-portal. Totalt undersöktes landslagsverksamhet vid 15-års ålder för sammanlagt 11 enskilda årskullar, totalt så kartlades 197 individer vad gäller födelsedatum och klubbtillhörighet vid 15- samt 20 års ålder. Resultat Studiens resultat visade att utav de totalt 197 undersökta individerna tillhörde 106 (53,8%) en förening på elitnivå vid 20-års ålder. Utav de 197 undersökta individerna tillhörde även 124 (62,9%) en förening på elitnivå vid 15-års ålder. Studien visade även att utav de 197 individerna som blivit uttagna vid 15-års ålder finns det en signifikant (x2 = 59,65) överrepresentation utav spelare födda under årets första kvartal jämfört med årets sista. Slutsats Studien har visat resultat kring hur många spelare som vid 15-års ålder tillhör Sveriges ungdomslandslag i fotboll och sedan tillhör elitnivå vid 20-års ålder att vara 53,8% utav alla utvalda. Detta kan ställas i paritet med andra nationer där snittet är lägre. Dock framgår det att det verkar förekomma inslag utav relativ ålders

[ES] El Scouting en el fútbol es un método para encontrar jugadores que se adapten y mejoren el rendimiento de un equipo. Además, cuando se realiza de manera adecuada, se convierte en una de las fuentes fundamentales de ingresos para cualquier club. El objetivo clave es obtener indicadores a través de datos que ayuden a resaltar talentos futbolísticos y diferencien entre jugadores. La importancia del Scouting no sólo se ve reflejada en la construcción de un equipo competitivo capaz de mejorar el rendimiento dentro del campo. Económicamente, supone la generación de ingresos a través de la venta de jugadores, por lo que la compra de un jugador que posteriormente incremente su valor en el mercado generará unos beneficios que ayudarán a mejorar las opciones de adquisición de jugadores en la siguiente temporada, y, por tanto, tener mejores jugadores que aumenten el nivel de competitividad. Además, un buen trabajo de Scouting ayuda a conseguir una estabilidad financiera y, por consecuencia, será más atractivo para inversores y patrocinadores. En este estudio se ha desarrollado una métrica denominada Score que evalúa el rendimiento de los jugadores en una escala del 1 al 100. Además, al combinar datos futbolísticos con datos económicos, enriquece la base de datos y le aporta más valor. En concreto, el precio del jugador en el mercado y la fecha de finalización de su contrato son variables introducidas que serán utilizadas para alcanzar los objetivos propuestos. Esto puede ayudar a los clubs de fútbol a ajustarse al presupuesto de cada equipo y a filtrar jugadores que quedarán libres próximamente. Por lo tanto, este trabajo se ha centrado en la creación de una aplicación interactiva que responde a la pregunta clave de negocio: "¿Qué jugadores tienen un buen rendimiento y deberían ficharse en función de las necesidades del equipo y presupuesto del club?". Además, también permite identificar jugadores con alta probabilidad de que su valor en el mercado aumente con el tiempo., [EN] Scouting holds a paramount role in football as a fundamental methodology for discovering players capable of adapting and elevating a team's performance. When executed with precision, it emerges as the primary revenue stream for any club. The ultimate aim is to procure datadriven indicators that illuminate football talents and differentiate among players. The significance of Scouting goes beyond just forming a competitive squad that can enhance its performance during matches. From a financial perspective, it involves creating income by selling players, and acquiring a player who later appreciates in market value leads to profits. These profits, in turn, bolster the club’s ability to make smarter acquisitions in the next season, resulting in a more skillful and competitive team. Moreover, effective Scouting contributes to the financial steadiness of the club, making it more appealing to potential investors and sponsors. Within the scope of this investigation, a metric dubbed "score" has been meticulously formulated to assess players performance on a comprehensive scale ranging from 1 to 100. By synergizing football-specific data with pertinent economic insights, an added layer of value is derived through the contemplation of a player's monetary worth and contract culmination date. This strategic amalgamation empowers teams to harmonize with their financial allocations while effectively filtering prospective signees on the cusp of attaining unrestricted free agency status. Given that coaches, sports directors, and club presidents often traverse uncharted statistical territory, the establishment of uncomplicated communication channels for data dissemination becomes paramount. Consequently, the focal point of this endeavor resides in the inception of an interactive application that cogently addresses the quintessential business query: "Which players exhibit commendable performance levels and should be procured, taking into account the team's specific requirements an