Abstract
The purpose of this study was to present the physiological profile of male soccer players who compete in the professional (Division [D] 1, 2, 3) and semi-professional (D4) Greek soccer leagues, and to compare their physiological profile according to playing division. Using 1,095 players (age: 25.2 ± 4.7 years), twelve anthropometric and physiological characteristics (age, height, body mass, BMI, VO2max, velocity of VO2max velocity at ventilatory threshold, maximum heart rate, maximum lactate, squat jump, 35 m sprint and sprinting fatigue index) were assessed. Factorial analysis of variance revealed a significantly (p < 0.05) enhanced physiological profile amongst the professional, compared to semi-professional players, for 10 of the 12 characteristics assessed between divisions. Regarding aerobic parameters, velocity at maximum oxygen uptake was the variable which discriminated professional, from semi-professional players most. With reference to anaerobic parameters, the 35m sprint was the variable which differentiated players between divisions (i.e. D1/D2 vs. D3/D4). Overall, findings in this study present the physiological profile of soccer players within the specified Greek soccer divisions, with differences identified between professional, and semi-professional divisions. These findings suggest that advanced physiological profiles may contribute to a player’s progression to higher divisions of Greek professional soccer.
Highlights
Elite soccer is a complex team sport, and performance depends upon numerous factors including technical, tactical, physiological, and psychological characteristics [1,2,3]
This study presented the physiological profiles of a large sample of professional and semi-professional soccer players competing in the top four Greek soccer divisions
When physiological characteristics were compared between divisions, results identified that generally professional players (i.e., D1, D2, and D3) outperformed semi-professional players (D4)
Summary
Elite soccer is a complex team sport, and performance depends upon numerous factors including technical, tactical, physiological, and psychological characteristics [1,2,3]. Over the last three decades, multiple scientific studies have been published [2,5] examining the physiological characteristics of soccer players These studies have provided data of the physiological profiles of soccer players, they are generally limited by small and homogeneous samples, and only include a select number of anthropometric and physiological parameters Studies often present characteristics undertaken at the beginning of the pre-season period when players are expected to underperform physiologically. This recent study involving 381 players of Greek professional soccer, is sought to be analogous to the aims of this study [8].
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