Men's World Cup Research Articles

Attack and Serve Performances According to the Match Period and Quality of Opposition in Elite Volleyball Matches

The purpose of this study was to examine attack and serve performances in the beginning and end of the initial and final sets of volleyball matches according to the quality of opposition. Six hundred rallies from the Men's World Cup 2007 were selectively sampled from a total of 5,117 rallies observed using video match analysis. Rally-by-rally double moving averages of serve and attack efficacy were plotted by 4 different match periods (first 15 rallies of the initial set; first 15 rallies of the final set; last 15 rallies of the initial set; and last 15 rallies of the final set). Approximate entropy values were calculated to analyze the amount of data randomness. The results were examined according to the quality of opposition in 2 types of games: higher level (HIGH) including the first 4 ranked teams and lower level (LOW) composed of the last 5 ranked teams. The results suggested that volleyball matches presented different profiles depending on the match period. Considering the teams' level, a greater adaptation was found within the HIGH × HIGH matches according to the match period and a more strategic use of the serve and attack tactics taking into account the type of the set (initial or final set) and the period (beginning or end of the set). The findings emphasize the need for coaches and players to perceive the most important points at the end of the set and to manage their effort throughout the match attempting to reach this period in optimal condition. Therefore, it might be beneficial to coaches to stress the need to perform at the highest level, particularly at the end of the training drills that simulate competition scenarios.

Attack Efficacy in Volleyball: Elite Male Teams

The goal was to identify performance indicators predicting attack efficacy in volleyball's game phase denominated Complex II, i.e., the counter-attack. 28 games from the 2007 Men's World Cup were analyzed. Attack efficacy was predicted by three primary variables: Attack tempo, Attack type, and Number of blockers. Power attack and Attack tempo 1 increased the probability of an Attack point. The supremacy of Attack tempo 3 and the high frequency of Two blockers and Three blockers reflected the difficulty of efficient attack during Complex II. Despite unfavourable conditions, attackers managed to execute Power attacks in the majority of the situations, and score a high frequency of Attack points.

A south in the north: emplacing the south in the American national myth

As part of a larger project concerning the men's World Cup of soccer in American culture, I examine media coverage of a single player on the US national team: Georgia – born forward Clint Mathis. Texts constructed this player's persona through a discussion of his unique style and southern identity. I analyze the construction of American national and southern regional identity within this coverage underscoring how the formation took place on both an internal (national) and external (global) scale.

Effects of quality of opposition and match status on technical and tactical performances in elite volleyball

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of quality of opposition and match status on technical and tactical volleyball performances, as measured by block, attack, serve, and set actions related to the tasks, space, players, and efficacy of selected game actions. Twenty-five matches from the men's World Cup 2007 were notated and through cluster analysis were classified as “high” (HIGH), “intermediate” (INT) or “low” (LOW) quality. The difference between points scored and points allowed was used to define match status. Multinomial logistic regression identified an association of match status with: set direction (likelihood ratio test [LRT] = 15.5, P = 0.017) and block typology (LRT = 9.6, P = 0.047) in HIGH vs. HIGH matches; attack player (LRT = 17.4, P = 0.026) and block typology (LRT = 9.2, P = 0.010) in LOW vs. LOW matches; and serve type (LRT = 17.4, P = 0.002), block strategy (LRT = 53.7, P <0.001), and serve efficacy (LRT = 26.0, P = 0.001) in HIGH vs. LOW matches. Results suggest that volleyball teams took more risky decisions in unbalanced situations. They also carried less risk through technical and tactical decisions in balanced and moderate situations whether they had the advantage or not. Therefore, strategic behaviour was affected by the interaction of quality of opposition and match status, providing a better understanding of volleyball game performance and new insights for practice, competition, and research.

Efficacy of the Volleyball Game Actions Related to the Quality of Opposition

Game analysis has an important role on the description of 'what happens' in competitions and should reach the ability to suggest new ways to enhance sport performances. In order to accomplish this goal is important that possible factors enables to influence these performances were considered. Quality of opposition is one of these factors. In this study, TwoStep Clusters analysis was used to classify group teams participated in FIVB Men's World Cup 2007 into competitive levels. The results show three different competitive levels ((1 st - 4 th ), (5 th - 7 th ), and (8 th - 12 th )). Chi-square tests were used to show the influence of quality of opposition, i.e. games against teams of different competitive levels, in the efficacy of some game actions (serve, attack and block). Results showed that the quality of the opposition influence the performance in some game actions.

New Europe, old games? Making sense of Anglo-Polish media coverage of England versus Poland football matches

Attention is primarily given to a comparative qualitative discourse analysis of British/English and Polish media coverage of England versus Poland football matches as part of the qualification rounds for the men's World Cup football tournament that were to be held in Germany in June 2006. The media discourse surrounding these matches was characterised by nostalgia, an ethnic assertiveness / defensiveness and a wilful stereotyping of opponents that can be understood as part of an active construction of ‘fantasy group charisma’ based on both the ‘invention of traditions’ and, at a deeper level, the habitus codes that underpin the ‘national character’ of European nations. The media's representations of identity politics can be understood from the vantage point of not solely ‘imagined communities’ and ‘invented traditions’ but also national habitus codes.