Football Sports Research Articles

Agents in the sporting field: a law and economics perspective

While agents have been active in the sporting field since the late 1800s, sports agents and their activities have grown in prominence only in more recent times, particularly as a result of typically adverse headlines. Agents are generally considered to be necessary (or some might say a necessary evil) for the sporting industry, in the representation of sportsmen and women, the consultation of sports clubs and franchises, or the facilitation of employment contracts and transfer deals. In contrast to players and clubs (not to mention sports federations and governing bodies), however, sports agents are not engaged in sporting endeavour. Rather, the essence of their role is an economic one for the provision of services. This peripheral position of sports agents implies that their interests are likely to be quite different from those of other stakeholders in the sports industry – but it also gives rise to a significant regulatory conundrum. This conundrum has become especially apparent in the sport of football in recent years, where various attempts at regulation of access to and the performance of the profession of football agent have been made at national and international level. The field of sports and football in particular clearly has a great societal impact and a large economic value. Yet, sports law is remarkably absent so far from the economic approach to law. From a law and economics perspective and in the light of regulation theory, therefore, our main research questions are whether there is a need to regulate the profession of sports agent and, if so, what type of regulation is needed.

Analysis of the level of aggression and violence of students and other professional groups who are fans of Düzce sports football

The study aimed to examine the levels of aggression and violence of students and other professional groups who are Düzcespor football fans. For the research model, the survey model, one of the quantitative research types, was chosen. The study's data collection process was carried out during the 2019-2020 season of the Turkey Football Federation, and the population of the study consisted of Düzcespor fans between the ages of 12-68. The sample of the study, on the other hand, consists of 498 people who voluntarily participated in the study using the random sample selection technique. As a result of normality tests (Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro Wilk), it was determined that the scores obtained from the scales did not show a normal distribution. For this reason, non-parametric tests Mann Whitney-U Test, Kruskal Wallis Test, and Bonferroni Test, one of the Post Hoc tests, were used to determine which group caused the significant difference between the groups as a result of the analysis. Frequency, percentage, minimum, maximum, average, and standard deviation values were also used to analyze the data. The level of significance was determined as p < 0.05. The study's findings showed that Düzcespor supporters had moderate aggression and violent behaviors. There was a significant difference between the variables of gender, age, education level, occupation and income, and aggression and violent behavior. The study results revealed that aggression and tendency to violence are higher in males, younger people, high school students and people with low income.

WITHDRAWN: Football sports safety and the health risk assessment system.

Ahead of Print article withdrawn by publisher.

The role of passing network indicators in modeling football outcomes: an application using Bayesian hierarchical models

Passes are undoubtedly the more frequent events in football and other team sports. Passing networks and their structural features can be useful to evaluate the style of play in terms of passing behavior, analyzing and quantifying interactions among players. The present paper aims to show how information retrieved from passing networks can have a relevant impact on predicting the match outcome. In particular, we focus on modeling both the scored goals by two competing teams and the goal difference between them. With this purpose, we fit these outcomes using Bayesian hierarchical models, including both in-match and network-based covariates to cover many aspects of the offensive actions on the pitch. Furthermore, we review and compare different approaches to include covariates in modeling football outcomes. The presented methodology is applied to a real dataset containing information on 125 matches of the 2016–2017 UEFA Champions League, involving 32 among the best European teams. From our results, shots on target, corners, and such passing network indicators are the main determinants of the considered football outcomes.

The Effect of Game Analytical Game (GAG) to Increase of Basic Skill Shooting Soccer Player 6-9 Years Old

Training units are commonly used in basic techniques of playing football through training models for players over 12 years old. Drill practice is practiced more on players than games. The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of the Game Analytical Game (GAG) training model in improving basic soccer shooting skills. This research method is quantitative research with Quasi-Experiment. The designs used were pre-test and post-test non-equivalent control group design. Participants who took part in this study were school soccer players (SSB) PORASS totaling 80 players aged 6-9 years. The data was collected by conducting tests using basic shooting technique instruments. The results of this study are based on data analysis through independent sample t-test. It is known that the sig (2-tailed) value is 0.000 <0.05 which indicates that the GAG model is effective in improving football shooting skills. It can be concluded that the GAG training model is effective in improving basic shooting technique skills in soccer games for SSB players aged 6-9 years. The literature that discusses the GAG training model in soccer games and studies investigating its effectiveness for improving the technique in players under 9 years old are lacking. It is important for future research to examine whether the GAG training model is effective in improving basic skills of passing and control in football or other sports.

The Degree of Availability of Crisis Management Elements in the Boards of Directors of Jordanian Football Sport Clubs in Light of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic

The study aimed at investigating the degree of availability of crisis management elements in the boards of directors of Jordanian football sport clubs in light of the Corona virus pandemic (COVID-19). The study adopted the descriptive cross-sectional research approach. The sample of the study comprised of (208) members of clubs boards of directors. The study utilized a 5-domain. The findings revealed that the degree of availability of crisis management elements in the boards of directors of Jordanian football sports clubs in light of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was at a moderate degree. In addition, there were no statistically significant differences in the degree of availability of crisis management elements in Football sport clubs' boards of directors referred to the variables (administrative experience, educational qualification, team rank). The study recommended the necessity of activating the role of crisis management elements in sports bodies and institutions and the need to enact legislation and laws that oblige members of sports club boards of directors to obtain training courses in the field of crisis management.

Types of students’ physical activity in a higher educational institution

This article presents the results of the questionnaire and comparison, which allows determining the interest of first-year students in different types of physical activity at the National University of Water and Environmental Engineering.&#x0D; The purpose of the study is to determine students’ interest in different types of physical activity offered as part of physical education in a higher educational institution.&#x0D; According to their preferences, first-year students are suggested to choose either team sports (football, mini-football, volleyball, basketball), individual sports (table tennis, athletics, arm wrestling, weightlifting, boxing, swimming, chess, and checkers), or fitness activities for physical education classes in an educational institution.&#x0D; The comparative analysis of the obtained data demonstrates the pattern of an increase from 65.1% in the 2015-2016 academic year to 71.0% in the 2020-2021 academic year in the number of young men, who have chosen and are engaged in a certain sport in an educational institution, and decrease from 34.9% in the 2015-2016 academic year to 29.0% in the 2020-2021 academic year in the number of young women interested in physical activity at the university.&#x0D; Within five years, the number of young men choosing team sports has decreased from 75.6% in the 2015-2016 academic year to 63.3% in the 2020-2021 academic year, and the number of young men interested in individual sports has increased from 24.4 % in the 2015-2016 academic year to 36.7% in the 2020-2021 academic year.&#x0D; Fitness classes remain the most popular among female students, although there has been a decrease in the number of young women choosing it for physical education from 83.3% to 71.8% over five years. Team sports are gaining more popularity among first-year female students with only 5.3% choosing them as part of physical education in an educational institution in the 2015-2016 academic year, to 10.2% in the 2020-2021 academic year. A gradual interest in individual sports from 11.4% to 18.0% is observed in young women over five years.

Using the ecological-intersectional model to explore the experiences and perceptions of volunteer women ladies Gaelic football coaches in Ireland

ABSTRACT Volunteer women coaches in non-elite sport are underrepresented in coaching literature. To address this gap, 14 women were interviewed to explore their lived experiences as volunteer coaches within a female-only team sport of ladies Gaelic football at non-elite level in Ireland. The participants met the following inclusion criteria (i) over eighteen, (ii) with at least five-years coaching experience and (iii) a coach education qualification. The Ecological-Intersectional Model informed the design and analysis phases. The findings show how support within the home is essential for their coaching involvement. The relationships with fellow coaches and athletes are integral to a positive experience and all coaches indicated a player-centred coaching philosophy. However, there are still some negative perceptions of women in coaching at societal level such as conscious and unconscious gender bias. The findings highlight the need for club-based support structures to attract, support, develop and retain volunteer women coaches at non-elite level.

Individual acceleration-speed profile in-situ: A proof of concept in professional football players

Assessing football players’ sprint mechanical outputs is key to the performance management process (e.g. talent identification, training, monitoring, return-to-sport). This is possible using linear sprint testing to derive force–velocity-power outputs (in laboratory or field settings), but testing requires specific efforts and the movement assessed is not specific to the football playing tasks. This proof-of-concept short communication presents a method to derive the players’ individual acceleration-speed (AS) profile in-situ, i.e. from global positioning system data collected over several football sessions (without running specific tests). Briefly, raw speed data collected in 16 professional male football players over several training sessions were plotted, and for each 0.2 m/s increment in speed from 3 m/s up to the individual top-speed reached, maximal acceleration output was retained to generate a linear AS profile. Results showed highly linear AS profiles for all players (all R2 > 0.984) which allowed to extrapolate the theoretical maximal speed and accelerations as the individual’s sprint maximal capacities. Good reliability was observed between AS profiles determined 2 weeks apart for the players tested, and further research should focus on deepening our understanding of these methodological features. Despite the need for further explorations (e.g. comparison with conceptually close force–velocity assessments that require, isolated and not football-specific linear sprint tests), this in-situ approach is promising and allows direct assessment of football players within their specific acceleration-speed tasks. This opens several perspectives in the performance and injury prevention fields, in football and likely other sprint-based team sports, and the possibility to “test players without testing them”.

Trajectories through temporal networks

What do football passes and financial transactions have in common? Both are networked walk processes that we can observe, where records take the form of timestamped events that move something tangible from one node to another. Here we propose an approach to analyze this type of data that extracts the actual trajectories taken by the tangible items involved. The main advantage of analyzing the resulting trajectories compared to using, e.g., existing temporal network analysis techniques, is that sequential, temporal, and domain-specific aspects of the process are respected and retained. As a result, the approach lets us produce contextually-relevant insights. Demonstrating the usefulness of this technique, we consider passing play within association football matches (an unweighted process) and e-money transacted within a mobile money system (a weighted process). Proponents and providers of mobile money care to know how these systems are used—using trajectory extraction we find that 73% of e-money was used for stand-alone tasks and only 21.7% of account holders built up substantial savings at some point during a 6-month period. Coaches of football teams and sports analysts are interested in strategies of play that are advantageous. Trajectory extraction allows us to replicate classic results from sports science on data from the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Moreover, we are able to distinguish teams that consistently exhibited complex, multi-player dynamics of play during the 2017–2018 club season using ball passing trajectories, coincidentally identifying the winners of the five most competitive first-tier domestic leagues in Europe.

283 Travel Factors in Away Games: A Case Study of a Women’s College Basketball Team

Abstract Introduction Previous investigations in professional basketball, football, and other sports have shown meaningful effects of factors like rest and length of a team’s road trip on overall performance, with detriments being attributed to travel. However, prior research in the context of college basketball has been relatively scant. Thus, the current study extends the literature by performing a case study on the impact of such travel factors on a women’s college basketball team. Methods Data from a total of 110 road games played over the last 10 seasons from 2010 to 2020 by a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) women’s college basketball team were collected from the college’s athletics site. We examined the influence of consecutive games played away, days in between games, back-to-back games, and miles traveled by the team on game outcomes and team performance. Specifically, we inspected box-score statistics, such as points scored, points allowed, shooting percentages (i.e., field-goal, free-throw, and three-point), rebounds, blocks, steals, assists, personal fouls, and turnovers. We performed a series of generalized regressions controlling for the team and opponent winning percentages entering each game, along with the opponent’s home time zone. Although neutral site games were excluded from our analyses, such events were still considered in determining the number of consecutive games played away from home. Results Our analyses revealed that the team scored significantly more points (p = .03), and won more games (p = .04) when traveling fewer miles away from their home city. We also found that fewer consecutive games played away were related to significantly more blocks of opponent shots (p = .02). Ultimately, the team shot significantly higher from the field when there were more days in between games (p = .03). Conclusion Findings from the present study reveal that certain aspects of team performance on the road appear to be influenced by miles traveled from the college’s home city, consecutive games played away, and days in between games. Results could be applied beyond the current context, whereby college basketball teams could utilize such findings to mitigate the impact of travel on athletes. Support (if any) None

“I’m a hurler … basically just a hurler”: a mixed methods study of the athletic identity of elite Irish Gaelic Athletic Association dual career athletes

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the manifestation of the unique cultural backdrop of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) (the historical and political underpinnings of the GAA; the promotion of elite GAA athletes as amateurs despite the increased professionalism in the sports; the significance of the club culture in the GAA) in the athletic identity of elite GAA dual career athletes (DCAs). A mixed methods research (MMR) design was adopted using quantitative and qualitative elements. Elite GAA DCAs (n = 9) representing the sports of hurling and Gaelic football simultaneously completed the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS) and engaged in semi-structured interviews. Athletic identity data were analysed from the completed AIMS and semi-structured interview data were analysed using a 6-step thematic analysis as per Braun et al. (2016). Eight of the DCAs measured “high” on the AIMS and athletic identities were largely reflective of the elite athlete performance narrative in line with the increased professionalism in the sports. The impact of the club culture in the GAA was evident particularly in the public athletic identity, exclusivity, and negative affectivity dimensions of athletic identity. The niche cultural backdrop of the GAA was manifest in all four dimensions of athletic identity in elite GAA DCAs, with the impact variable on an individual basis. This, along with the prevalence of an elite athlete performance narrative in the expression of their athletic identity needs to be considered regarding DC engagement and support.

Technical Review of The Role Physical Conditions in Football

Football requires good physical condition in playing and competing. There are four phases in football training, namely physical, technical, tactical and mental. This study discusses the physical conditions required in the sport of football and was analyzed using the review method against references published online, related to physical conditions. In this research, it shows that the physical components in football are very influential in the game. Limited this study does not analyze matches. Research related to physical components has been widely used such as strength, flexibility, speed, endurance and anthopometric conditions, namely arm length, leg length.

"The Referee Plays to Be Insulted!": An Exploratory Qualitative Study on the Spanish Football Referees' Experiences of Aggression, Violence, and Coping.

Referees are essential participants in the sport of football. They are responsible for enforcing the rules and achieving the necessary impartiality for the matches. Referees are often target of hostile reactions from fans, players, and coaches. However, few studies have focused on these experiences and the strategies they use to manage them. In order to fill this gap, a qualitative interview-based study was developed to explore the experiences of a group of football referees (four males and four females) on aggression, violence, and coping. A thematic analysis was developed combining inductive and deductive processes. Results indicated that the most frequent aggressions experienced were verbal abuse. Most of the aggressions from spectators were of a sexist nature. When aggressions were considered normal by referees, symbolic violence emerged. Racist aggressions were directed to the two Moroccan participants. Problem and emotional-focused coping strategies were identified. The two most common referee responses to coaches’ and players’ verbal abuse were penalties and send-off calls. Smiling and not considering insults as a personal matter were two emotional-focused coping strategies used toward spectator aggressions. Implications for the referees’ job and well-being as well as the quality of football competitions were highlighted to reduce aggressions and violence and to help referees to cope with hostile behaviors.

Large sports and recreation facilities in the tourism space of Łódź

With the growing number of sports and other types of cultural events held in Łódź, there is a demand for new sports and recreational facilities, such as football stadiums and sports and entertainment halls. The aim of this article is to show the importance of the largest sports and recreational facilities located in the tourism space of Łódź. The analysis is mainly based on an inventory of stadiums and multi-purpose arenas in Łódź. In addition, the article provides a review of the literature related to sport tourism in cities, with emphasis on definitions of sport tourism and tourism space. Another category of information used by the author includes data compiled by institutions managing the facilities and bodies responsible for the organization of sports events in the city. The sport facilities of interest are also classified according to selected criteria. Finally, the discussion is supported by statistics about tourist traffic during sports and cultural events associated with the analysed sport and recreation facilities. The analysis indicates that the largest sports and recreation facilities play a role in the tourism space of Łódź but it is not as significant played by Piotrkowska Street or the Manufaktura shopping and service center.

The Impact of Gelora Manahan Solo Renovation on Persis Solo Potential Sport Tourism

Football is an extraordinary type of tourism in the sports sector which is very popular in the world, which the matches of football teams being tourist attraction objects that provide benefits for the organizers of the competition and the football club itself. Indonesian football competition has been participated by many professional teams, one of them is PERSIS Solo who participated in league 2. This research aims to analyze the potential interest in PERSIS Solo sports tourism in Surakarta after the renovation program of the Manahan Solo Stadium. This type of research is descriptive qualitative. The analysis method uses SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats). Internal environment analysis will focus on strengths and weaknesses, while the external environment will be the focus on opportunities and threats. The results showed that PERSIS Solo was in the quadrant I position, so the management of the club could take a policy with utilizing the strength of the internal environment to maximize existing market opportunities. Keywords:Football Sport, Persis Solo, SWOT Analysis, Special Interest Tourism

‘We need a whole range of different views’: exploring the lived experiences of women leaders in Australian rules football

Sport has traditionally been a male-dominated pastime, where the structures and practices within sport have most often favoured males. More recently, the dynamic of sport has changed and the capabilities of women as athletes and employees (including leaders) are being recognised. While there are ongoing explorations focussing on the barriers that women have faced as a minority group in a male-dominated setting, it is also imperative to acknowledge the positive experiences of women as they navigate such a setting. This paper explores the experiences of 26 women working in traditionally male-dominated leadership positions in the sport of Australian rules football. While these women have faced some challenges relating to gender within their roles, this paper, through a third wave feminist lens, will focus specifically on highlighting the positive experiences of, and changes that are evident for, women in traditionally male-dominated leadership positions in Australian rules football.

Norbert Elias’s concept of the ‘drag-effect’: implications for the study of the relationship between national identity and sport

In this paper Norbert Elias’s concept of the ‘drag-effect’ is argued to be important for exploring the complexities of the relationship between national identity and sport. Elias’s distinct sociological perspective is briefly outlined before the importance of Elias’s drag-effect is considered alongside other much more popular concepts commonly used in the study of nationalism and sport. The concept of the drag-effect is then applied to help make sense of the relationship between contemporary English national identity and sport, using specific examples from the sport of association football. Future researchers are encouraged to make greater use of Elias’s drag-effect for studying the complex relationships between other national identities and sports.

Comprehensive Performance Measurement System (CPMS) and Satisfaction of Malaysian Football Players: A Mediating Role of Reward

This paper aims to examine the relationship between Comprehensive Performance Measurement (CPMS) and football player satisfaction mediated by the role of reward. Structural Equation Model (SEM) through the PLS Smart Modeling verifies the construct and tests the hypothesis. There were 330 professional football players from the Super League and Malaysia Premier League involved in this study. The study findings showed the reward acts as a social factor of an extrinsic motivator was fully internalized towards intrinsic motivation has a positive and significant impact on the relationship between CPMS and the football players' satisfaction. It is based on the self-determination theory, comprising three basic psychological needs: autonomy, relatedness, and competence that can influence players' satisfaction and enhance performance. This study was conducted in a football sports setting that adds to the knowledge of CPMS in performance evaluation based on self-determination theory. The CPMS, as a source of reference, can use to improve documentation from the aspects of setting skills standard, physical fitness, regulations, and strategies. It can increase the quality and performance of the players as well as the football team in Malaysia, all at once giving high levels of satisfaction.

Prevalence of Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Football Players: A Novel Multi Football Clubs Cross Sectional Study.

Sports offer great benefits, improving health and reducing the risk of illnesses. This study’s aim was to investigate the prevalence of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus in football players compared to population based non-elite athlete control subjects. Initially 1100 male volunteers, (550) football players, and (550) population based non-elite athlete control subjects were interviewed. After socio-demographic and medical history analysis, 756 (378) nonsmoker male football players and (378) nonsmoker male control subjects were recruited. The control subjects were not involved in regular sports activities such as football, volleyball, badminton, cricket, hockey, and swimming. Participants with a known history of anemia, blood diseases, diabetes mellitus, and malignancy were excluded from the study. The mean age of football players was 31.80 ± 5.46 years, Body Mass Index (BMI) was 26.40 ± 2.08 (kg/m2), and the mean age of control subjects was 32.32 ± 4.37 years, and BMI was 26.66 ± 1.87 (kg/m2). The selected football players have been playing football for about 2 h a day, 3 days per week, and so the total mean duration of playing football was 1.08 years. American Diabetes Association (ADA) based criteria on Glycated Hemoglobin (HbA1c) was used to investigate prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus. In football players the prevalence of prediabetes was 30 (7.93%) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) was 6 (1.59%) compared to population based matched non-elite athlete control subjects where the prediabetes was 71 (18.78%) and T2DM was 89 (23.54%) (p = 0.001). Among football players there was a 7-fold decrease in T2DM compared to control subjects. Football recreational activities markedly reduce the prevalence of prediabetes and T2DM. The study findings demonstrate the benefits of football and other such sport activities and emphasize the urgent need for promoting football based physical activities as a physiological preventive strategy against the globally growing diabetes epidemic.