Asian Football Confederation Research Articles

Ranking the Performances of Goalkeepers By WASPAS Method: AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023

This study aims to evaluate and rank goalkeepers’ performances who competed in the Asian Cup Qatar 2023 according to some parameters. The sample size of the study was 22 goalkeepers. Data were obtained from the official website of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Transfermarkt. Criteria used in the analysis to rank the performances of the goalkeepers were save percentage per match, number of catches and punches, and successful passes percentage per match. The criteria were weighted via the ranking method. Five steps of the WASPAS method among multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques were used to rank goalkeepers. According to the results of the analysis, GKs were ranked from 1 to 22 in terms of their performances, and the mean composite optimal value (Qi) was 0.696. The highest Qi value was 0.866, while the lowest was calculated as 0.310. According to the performance ranking, the top 3 GKs were determined as Rustam Yatimov (Tajikistan), Meshaal Barsham (Qatar), and Mathew Ryan (Australia). On the other hand, the lowest-ranked GKs were determined as Enando Ari (Indonesia), Zion Suzuki (Japan), and Rami Hamada (Palestine). Key Words: Goalkeeper, goalkeeper performance, ranking goalkeeper, WASPAS method, MCDM

Achievement of Women Football in India- A Review

The purpose of the present study was threefold i.e., to investigate and document the history of women's football in India, tracing its evolution, milestones, and key developments over the years, to contextualize the study within the broader landscape of women's football in India, examining the challenges, successes, and unique aspects of the sport in the country and to analyze the achievements of women's football, including the accomplishments of individual footballers, and assess their impact on the sport's growth and recognition in India. By addressing these objectives, the study aimed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the history and status of women's football in India, shedding light on its past, present, and the contributions of players to the sport's development. This research can be valuable in promoting awareness and facilitating further advancements in women's football within the Indian context. The Indian women's national football team is under the control of the All-India Football Federation and represents India in women's international football competitions. After a nearly year-long hiatus, the women's team resumed playing on 7 September 2012. The team operates under the global jurisdiction of FIFA and is governed in Asia by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Additionally, the team is a member of the South Asian Football Federation. During the mid-70s to early 80s, the Indian women's national team was among the best teams in Asia. They achieved notable success by becoming runners-up in the 1979 and 1983 AFC Women's Asian Cup. These achievements highlighted their competitiveness and skill on the Asian football stage. In more recent times, the Indian team achieved a significant milestone by winning its first gold medal in the 2010 South Asian Games held in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Players like Bembem Devi and Ansha were standout performers during this period, contributing to the team's success. This history underscores the rich legacy of women's football in India and the potential for future growth and success on both the Asian and international stages. The Indian women's national football team continues to inspire and pave the way for future generations of female footballers in the country. To find out the data and various information Researcher reviewed different websites, Google, Wikipedia, Newspaper, Sports magazines, Books, etc. Initially, the author went through literature related to women's sports. Further, he shortened his area of focus and restricted it to the area of Women's football in the Olympics and other sports. He went through all sorts of information available in the form of secondary sources like books, journals, articles, magazines, newspapers, the internet, etc., and accumulated all important data relevant to the topic and presented in the thesis. In conclusion, while progress has been made in the realm of women's football, there is still much work to be done to ensure that female athletes receive the same rights, recognition, and opportunities as their male counterparts. It is imperative that stakeholders in the football world and society at large continue to push for greater gender equality in sports, fostering an environment where female football players can thrive both on the field and in their social lives..

"To the East"? Israeli Soccer's Asian Period and Debates about the Jewish State's Cultural Affiliations with the Continent

Abstract: For two decades, from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s, Israeli soccer players participated in Asian leagues and associations. During this period, they achieved much and celebrated significant athletic victories. But at the same time, they were met with hostility and boycotts and excluded from entire tournaments, until August 1976, when the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) officially expelled the Israeli Football Association (IFA) from its ranks. From the outset, the national team's activities in Asia elicited intense discussions about Israel's membership in the AFC that went far beyond the weighing of practical and athletic issues. By tracing these debates as they raged in the Israeli press, in this article I demonstrate that the question of the IFA's regional affiliation was a platform for deeper deliberations about the country's very place on the Asian continent. The highly ambivalent attitudes that emerged, I argue, reflected deep insecurities about the Jewish state's geo-cultural belonging and self-perception that are best understood against the backdrop of Israeli political realities of the 1960s and 70s and in the context of early twentieth-century debates about the orientation of the Zionist movement.

"To the East"? Israeli Soccer's Asian Period and Debates about the Jewish State's Cultural Affiliations with the Continent

Abstract: For two decades, from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s, Israeli soccer players participated in Asian leagues and associations. During this period, they achieved much and celebrated significant athletic victories. But at the same time, they were met with hostility and boycotts and excluded from entire tournaments, until August 1976, when the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) officially expelled the Israeli Football Association (IFA) from its ranks. From the outset, the national team's activities in Asia elicited intense discussions about Israel's membership in the AFC that went far beyond the weighing of practical and athletic issues. By tracing these debates as they raged in the Israeli press, in this article I demonstrate that the question of the IFA's regional affiliation was a platform for deeper deliberations about the country's very place on the Asian continent. The highly ambivalent attitudes that emerged, I argue, reflected deep insecurities about the Jewish state's geo-cultural belonging and self-perception that are best understood against the backdrop of Israeli political realities of the 1960s and 70s and in the context of early twentieth-century debates about the orientation of the Zionist movement.

Bio-secure bubble during the COVID-19 pandemic to host the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League: A retrospective observational study.

To describe the COVID-19 positivity rate among football players, team staff, and local organizing committee members participated in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (West) tournament organized with the Bio-secure bubble protocol in place. A retrospective observational study was carried out to include a total of 2184 participants during the AFC-West tournament in Qatar, which was a 3-weekevent (September 14-October 3, 2020). This event was undertaken under the Bio-secure bubble protocol, which was developed and implemented for sports events in Qatar during the pandemic. Within 72 h of departure and upon arrival in Qatar, all participants underwent reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reactiontesting (RT-PCR) to diagnose COVID-19. The test was considered positive based on the cycle threshold(cT) value which was <30, whereas, reactive if cT value was ≥30 and<40, and negative (cT > 40). Of the 2184 participants (528 players, 388 team staff, and 1268 local staff), 916 international participants were tested for COVID-19 PCR upon arrival at the Hamad International Airport, whereas the local staff (n = 1268) were tested 2 days before entering the bubble. The mean age of the players was 27.5 ± 9.8. Fifteen teams participated and as many as 60 matches were played over 3 weeks. Most participants tested negative (95.3%)and 3.9%tests were inconclusive. During the entire tournament, the positivity rate was 2.7% among all participants. Of the total positive cases, 0.8% were positive before entering the bubble system. The remaining (1.9%) tested positive during the tournament phase (19 players, 16 team officials, and 8 organizing committeestaff). Bio-secure bubble protocol operated in a controlled environment presents a minimal risk of COVID-19 infection for hosting international football events. This framework could be benchmarked to resume professional football competitions under unprecedented pandemic situations.

Value of project management during a crisis: Successes and lessons from three large projects in Qatar

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has tested the limits of national public health infrastructures to an unprecedented extent. A huge challenge has been regarding how to safely manage large public gatherings and how to efficiently administer vaccines to a large population. Method: We evaluated three case studies in project management implemented by the Primary Healthcare Corporation (PHCC) over the course of 2020 and 2021, including: COVID-19 screening for the HH Amir Cup and Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Finals 2020, the FIFA Club World Cup 2020, and finally Qatar's National COVID-19 Mass Vaccination Project in the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) in 2021. Results: The key themes arising from all the three projects include the importance of developing a strategic plan, project management planning, clarifying and communicating roles and responsibilities, situational decision making, strong leadership, flexibility, result orientation in implementing the project, strong logistical support for providing necessary resources on the ground, and ensuring that staff at all levels are fully supported in performing their duties. In addition, the project management team was successful in building knowledge and experience across events with each successive project benefitting from lessons learned from previous projects. As a result of the strong record of project management established over the course of these experiences, PHCC was able to successfully manage the mass vaccination project with a high level of efficiency in comparison to similar national programs implemented elsewhere, both regionally and globally. Conclusion: The successful implementation of these projects, maintaining a high level of client and staff safety and satisfaction, demonstrates the value of project planning and continuous monitoring in successful implementation even in the context of uncertain conditions such as a global pandemic. Public and community health authorities may benefit by applying similar principles as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to unfold.

Resumption of professional football league with spectators during the COVID-19 pandemic: The implementation of Bio-secure bubble protocol.

Background: Elite professional sports events involving mass gatherings carry a high risk of viral transmission during the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We describe the potential impact of resuming professional football leagues involving international participants adhering to a strict Bio-secure bubble protocol and investigate the consequences of spectators/fan attendance at such mass events during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in Qatar.Methods: We conducted a descriptive cohort study involving football players, referees, match officials, local organizing committee (LOC) members, hotel and security staff working in close coordination, and over 10,000 spectators from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (East) and the final match. The study covered almost four weeks of the event (November 19 to December 19, 2020) under a robust Bio-secure bubble protocol. It included extensive severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) every 3–6 days and clinical symptom monitoring on and off the field. Target variables included positive RT-PCR results and clinical symptom monitoring among participants, and rapid antigen testing for fan attendance to examine their safe return to the stadiums.Results: A total of 12,250 RT-PCR tests involving 3158 individuals in the Bio-secure bubble were done over one month for all the AFC (East) matches, including the final match. Overall, 44 matches involving 16 teams were played. During the championship, only five individuals (three LOC members and two match officials) returned positive for COVID-19 infections. Four individuals (three team staff/officials and one person outside the Bio-secure bubble) had reactive results. None of the players tested positive for COVID-19 infection. All individuals testing positive were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms, with no one requiring hospitalization other than symptomatic treatment. The overall positivity rate was 0.15% for the entire duration of the AFC (East) Champions League. For the final match, a total of 10,320 rapid antigen tests were done for spectators, of which only one test was positive for COVID-19.Conclusions: This report shows a very low incidence rate of COVID-19 infections during mass gathering events at the international level. For the resumption of football with spectators, careful mitigation strategies should be considered to reduce the risk of transmission to a sufficiently safe level. This may require proper coordination and measures (i.e., physical distancing, testing, entry, and exit routes in the stadium, and seating arrangement inside the stadium with limited attendance). Based on this, during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the supervised and controlled resumption of football matches with spectators can be done safely provided that a strict Bio-secure bubble protocol has been implemented.

Epidemiology of soccer injuries in Korea women national team for 5 years.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the characteristics of injuries in female national soccer players. The injuries data were recorded by Korea Football Association medical staff using the Daily Medical Report provided by the Asian Football Confederation during a total 21 training camps and friendly and official matches from January 2014 to December 2018. A total of 483 players in the national team training camps and matches participated in the study, of which 377 players experienced more than one injury. Sports injuries accounted for 89% of the total 1,019 injuries; general diseases accounted for the remaining 11%. The number of injuries per 1,000 exposure hours was higher in matches than in training sessions. Most injuries that occurred during training and matches involved the lower extremities (79%). The most common injury diagnosed during training and matches was muscle rigidity (45%), followed by contusions/hematomas/bruises (22%) and sprain (15%). The largest proportions of injuries in terms of absence from soccer play were minimal injury (67%), followed by mild (29%), moderate (3.5%), and severe (1%). As conclusion, the characteristics of injuries during training sessions and matches were different. Rehabilitation and injury prevention programs need to developed for female soccer players to improve the players’ performance.

Development of Sports Medicine in India and Recent Advances

Sports are beneficial for us both at individual and social levels. Sports Medicine is an ancient subject. Sports medicine in India is steadily growing. Sports activities have witnessed a remarkable upswing in the recent times, and we require a huge number of sports support staff. There is an urgent need to look at capacity building of institutions in our country. Government of India has launched several measures for sports development including the Khelo India Scheme. Sports Medicine is a multidisciplinary field with a broad objective, focusing on holistic athlete care and not only injuries. Injury prevention, peak performance, high competition levels, and surge in number of sports events has resulted in the development of Sports Medicine. It uses a multi-modal approach including new strategies and technologies. Technology is helping to analyze and create new strategies for boosting performance. Genetic technology can improve performance, health, and safety. Latest advances in sensory garments, helmets, mouth guards, monitors, and wearables have made sports medicine indispensable. Recent advances like High Altitude Simulation Training, Anti-gravity treadmill, exoskeletons, bio-harnesses, smart fabrics, Virtual and Augmented Reality are revolutionizing sports. Centre for Sports Science at Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (deemed to be university) in Chennai is a center of excellence for Asian Football Confederation and International Cricket Council in India. It serves as a hub for Sports Science Training, Education and Research in India applying the latest scientific advances in sports medicine and sports science. Sports have grown from being just a source of entertainment to a social culture and also as a gratifying career option for many. This trend is expected to evolve further with a bright scope for everyone connected with the sports ecosystem.

The Covid-19 pandemic and Asian Football Confederation match officials

An essential requirement of sport, and especially elite professional sport, are umpires, judges, referees, and other adjudicators of the rules of the games. Yet studies of match officials, in the social sciences especially, have only relatively recently begun to gain traction. This article traces the challenges and opportunities association football match officials (referees and assistant referees) in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) faced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and early 2021. It provides an overview of the strategies and actions that the AFC took, primarily drawing on analysis of ethnographic observations, documentary evidence and notes from the research diary of an AFC elite referee with the Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA). The article identifies key aspects of pandemic-related developments and indicates how these may have altered future processes of training and development of referees in the AFC for good. The article thus offers a distinctive contribution to the development of referee studies focussing as it does on the experiences of match officials outside of Europe.

Injury and illness epidemiology in professional Asian football: lower general incidence and burden but higher ACL and hamstring injury burden compared with Europe

BackgroundWhile football injury and illness epidemiology surveillance at professional club level in Europe is available, epidemiological data from other continents are lacking.PurposeInvestigating injury and illness epidemiology in professional Asian football.Study...

You Can’t Sit with Us. Discrimination against Women in Football: a Commentary of the Mariyam Mohamed vs. Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Elections Case

You Can’t Sit with Us. Discrimination against Women in Football: a Commentary of the Mariyam Mohamed vs. Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Elections Case

Asian football: how corruption disrupted marketing value in the game’s largest fan market

Theoretical basis This case is focused on the allegations of corrupt practices within the strategic leadership at the board level of an international sports organization – the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The theoretical premise is that the practices and decisions of the AFC’s leadership will have a profound impact on the AFC’s performance. However, because the AFC is the continental governing body, the impact is theorized to be far larger, across an entire industry. In writing the case, the authors were guided by upper Echelons theory (UET) (Hambrick and Mason, 1984; Hambrick, 2007; Hambrick et al., 2015), which argues that an organization’s strategic direction is directly influenced by its leader’s values. The authors selected UET for the theoretical framework, as it considered a spectrum of factors from industry, leader characters (values), their choices and the results of their actions. Such a comprehensive theory aligned with the complexities of the AFC and its leadership. In constructing the case roadmap using UET, the authors first adopted an ethnographic methodology. This was motivated by the fact that one of the authors had been embedded for many years as part of the leadership team at the AFC. His career work notes based on direct interactions and observations of these leaders helped in two ways: to identify the complex set of personal characteristics of these leaders (i.e. background, their careers outside football and financial standing) as they originated from 47 different nationalities. UET refers to these as observable factors to better theorize the hidden intentions of their alleged corrupt behaviors. UET identifies this second set of non-observable factors as psychological factors. These two different sets of observations combined helped to theorize their drivers, intentions and strategic decisions (options). For the second methodology, the authors accessed archival, publicly available media news and reports to understand the consequences of their actions to the AFC and the Asian football industry. This completed the final parts of the UET framework (Yamak et al., 2014). Research methodology This case relied on information that was widely reported within international media, press announcements by various organizations, published decisions by tribunals and publicly available information on the AFC. All of the names and positions in this case are actual persons. Case overview/synopsis This case focuses on the role and influence of the AFC as the Asian football governing body. The AFC is a member of the world football governing body – FIFA. With a US$1bn budget, the AFC has a strong impact on the future of football among Asia’s three billion people. Unfortunately, the AFC has been unable to create the value in its sports events or properties that attracts fans and investors. Central to this problem is the issue of corruption and corruption allegations within the AFC, especially with regard to its leadership. This case, therefore, attempts to highlight the various issues, discusses the circumstances around these challenges and brings forth the complexities of leading a truly international organization across 47 countries. Such factors are then tied to the value of the organization’s products or services in the marketplace. Complexity academic level The case is written and designed for a graduate level (MBA) class or an upper level undergraduate class such as corporate strategy, leadership, international management, international marketing, contemporary issues in management, cross-cultural management, sports management and sports marketing. In general, the case will also be a good fit for courses that discuss leadership, organizational strategy, organizational structure, organizational ethics and organizational behavior.

Relative age effect in U-16 Asian Championship Soccer Tournament

Athletes born at the beginning of the year may present the advantage of physical characteristics, motor ability or cognitive knowledge that could increase their chances for selection against their peers. This circumstance could lead to the over-representation of older athletes in an age-defined competition which is commonly referred to as relative age effect (RAE). Although, a number of studies have demonstrated that RAE is apparent in youth soccer, such studies barely investigates the performance advantage that may likely exists across the birth month of the athletes. The current study aims to determine the presence of RAE in the under 16 Asian Football Confederation Championship (AFC), investigate the effect of RAE on the team qualification success as well as ascertain the existence of RAE in the playing position amongst the soccer players. Data of the 2018 AFC under 16 qualifications matches were obtained from the AFC. A total of 719 players from 32 countries participated in the qualification competitions. Chi-square for goodness fit is used to determine the existence of the RAE across the players’ month of birth while logistic regression is applied to analyze the differences of the quartiles’ distribution with respect to the quartile, qualification status (qualifier or non-qualifier) as well as the playing position of the players. The results demonstrate the presence of RAE in the AFC under 16 soccer tournaments [χ2(4) = 21.53; p &lt; 0.001] with the largest number of older players dominating the qualified team. Likewise, a substantial difference is observed with regards to the quartile and various playing position of the players p &lt; 0.05.

Analysis of injury incidences in the Korea national men's soccer teams.

The purpose of this study was to identify the frequency and characteristics of injuries that occurred during the training camps and matches of the national soccer teams (under-20 [U-20], under-23 [U-23], A men’s national teams). The research data were based on injuries that occurred from January 2016 to December 2017. The athletic trainer, a member of the Korea Football Association, recorded injuries based on the recording sheet of the Asian Football Confederation Daily Medical Report. A total of 1,689 (984 in 2014; 705 in 2017) injuries were reported for the 2 years. Most injuries were sports injuries (95%, sprains, etc.), and other conditions such as respiratory, digestive, and ocular, comprised only 5% of cases. The most injured areas of the national team players were the lower limbs (85%, 1,366). The frequency of the head/trunk and upper extremity injuries were relatively low (8.4%, 135; 6.5%, 105). The frequency of injuries according to positions were as follows: midfielder (40.3%, 648), defender (36.6%, 688), forward (17.8%, 286), and goalkeeper (5.2%, 84). The most common types of injuries were contusions (37.3%, 599), followed by muscle rigidity (29.0%, 466) and sprains (16.8%, 270). The characteristics of injuries amongst national soccer teams, according to age, were similar, but the injury characteristics for each position were different. Therefore, when organizing training programs for prevention and rehabilitation of athlete injuries and improvement of performance, it is necessary to consider the performance characteristics of each position.

Technical and tactical performance indicators discriminating winning and losing team in elite Asian beach soccer tournament.

The present study aims to identify the essential technical and tactical performance indicators that could differentiate winning and losing performance in the Asian elite beach soccer competition. A set of 20 technical and tactical performance indicators namely; shot back-third, shot mid-third, shot front-third, pass back-third, pass mid-third, pass front-third, shot in box, shot outbox, chances created, interception, turnover, goals scored 1st period, goals scored 2nd period, goals scored 3rd period, goals scored extra time, tackling, fouls committed, complete save, incomplete save and passing error were observed during the beach soccer Asian Football Confederation tournament 2017 held in Malaysia. A total of 23 matches from 12 teams were notated using StatWatch application in real-time. Discriminant analysis (DA) of standard, backward as well stepwise modes were used to develop a model for the winning (WT) and losing team (LT) whilst Mann-Whitney U test was utilized to ascertain the differences between the WT and LT with respect to the performance indicators evaluated. The standard backward, forward and stepwise discriminates the WT and the LT with an excellent accuracy of 95.65%, 91.30% and 89.13%, respectively. The standard DA model discriminated the teams from seven performance indicators whilst both the backward and forward stepwise identified two performance indicators. The Mann-Whitney U test analysis indicated that the WT is statistically significant from the LT based on the performance indicators determined from the standard mode model of the DA. It was demonstrated that seven performance indicators namely; shot front-third, pass front-third, chances created, goals scores at the 1st period, goals scored at the 2nd period, goals scored at 3rd period were directly linked to a successful performance whilst the incomplete save by the keeper attribute towards the poor performance of the team. The present finding could serve useful to the coaches as well as performance analysts as a measure of profiling successful performance and enables team improvement with respect to the associated performance indicators.

'Ono, oh Yes!': An A-League Tensai (Genius) Made in Japan

In 2005, Football Federation Australia (FFA) launched its latest attempt to create a professional men’s soccer football league in Australia, the A-League. The new competition aimed to distance itself from the old National Soccer League, which was based around ethnically affiliated clubs and in doing so appeal to a bigger, more mainstream, market. The formation of the A-League also coincided with Australia’s alignment with the Asian Football Confederation for World Cup qualification and related championship play. Ambitious thinkers within FFA envisaged soccer football providing a vehicle to facilitate economic, cultural and political linkages into Asia in what has been termed the ‘Asian Century’. However, while teams boosted their rosters with international players, there was a noticeable lack of players from Asia. In this paper we focus on Japanese international Shinji Ono, a marquee signing for the Western Sydney Wanderers (WSW) in 2012, who arguably became the first ‘Asian’ sporting celebrity in Australia. Hs impact on the A-League is considered both for fans of the WSW and in the marketing of the league more generally. Affectionately known as tensai (genius), Ono embodied characteristics that marked him as uniquely Japanese and captured the imagination of Australian football fans as few other players have.

Israel–Malaysia Relations and the Place of Football

While seeking to establish their respective international positions following their foundation, Israel and Malaysia also interacted with each other. However, in light of the Israeli–Arab conflict, and mainly due to Malaysia’s domestic considerations and geo-political interests, the interactions remained limited and official relations were not established. This study relies on the notion that sport is potentially an important tool for engagement between states. It examines contemporaneous Israeli and Singapore press and brings together the various episodes and voices pertinent to the way Israel–Malaysia relations unfolded through football until the 1970s. The paper offers an historical perspective on the relations by focusing on a game that was highly popular in both countries. I argue that, while considering the various limitations that were involved, the Prime Minister of Malaysia and President of the Asian Football Confederation, Tunku Abdul Rahman, cautiously maintained the football channel with Israel open. Accordingly, in light of the significantly low-level of other means of contact, football functioned as a carefully managed yet meaningful line of communication by involving a prime minister, senior sports administrators, athletes, football fans, journalists, and sports readers. The essay thus contributes a case study to the emerging body of literature on football relations between states.

Web-Based Supportive Psychotherapy to Prevent Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Cross Sectional Study on the Iranian National Under-14 Girls’ Football Team After Nepal Earthquake in 2015

Background: Earthquakes are devastating natural disasters. When an earthquake occurs during a significant event, such as Asian football confederation (AFC) under-14 girls� regional championship in Nepal (2015), all catastrophic casualties should be taken into account, including mental side effects on young sensitive groups. The present paper aimed to report risk-reduction activities for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 18 young members of the Iranian football team. Methods: Distant location of the team members persuaded the team physician to use Internet-based social applications for supportive psychotherapy during 1 year after the shock. The child report of posttraumatic symptoms (CROPS), along with the parent report of posttraumatic symptoms (PROPS), was used to collect data from players and their parents. No randomization (except for replications) was applied and no control group was recruited in this study. Results: The results showed that some of the girls had acute stress symptoms and were prone to acute stress disorder if left unattended. The average CROPS score was 20.06 (SD, 2.48) in the second week, which decreased to 1.33 (SD, 1.29) after 1 year. Similar results in the sixth and twelfth months showed that the girls could reach a stable mental status using online supportive psychotherapy. Conclusions: Despite lack of access to patients, use of supportive psychotherapy is still possible. Online meetings can help psychologists follow the stages of treatment accurately. The results of CROPS showed that it is possible to provide psychotherapy support through online discussions with patients. © 2017, Asian Journal of Sports Medicine.

Grassroots Football Development in Japan

The history and issues surrounding elite football in Japan have been addressed by a number of scholars. However, grassroots football, although fundamental to the development of the code, has rarely been explored in the academic literature. In Japan, the importance of grassroots football has received heightened attention by the Japanese Football Association (JFA) since 2003, with 20% growth in the number of registered players under 12 years old from 2003 (262,956 players) to 2014 (315,178 players) a result of the JFA’s initiatives in this area. Japan is currently one of the most successful countries in Asia in terms of grassroots football development and the JFA won the Asian Football Confederation’s award, namely ‘The Best Member Association of the Year 2013 for Grassroots Football’. This paper explores the key driver behind the development of grassroots football development, namely the 47 Prefectural Football Associations, which provide programmes and technical, physical and promotional services which include activities to increase opportunities, facilities, coach education, elite pathways, and competitions for grassroots football. The paper concludes that the factors which have resulted in the success of Japan’s grassroots football revolve around governance of Prefectural Football Associations, coach education programmes, increased opportunities by clubs, leagues and schools, and collaboration with stakeholders within and outside of Prefectural Football Associations.