Towards a model for measuring holistic performance of professional Football clubs

This paper introduces an experimental model to measure the holistic performance of professional football clubs. The model utilizes a selection of established financial and sporting indicators, which are weighted in accordance with their perceived relative importance and in relation to components of financial management and governing body regulations. The paper uses data pertaining to clubs competing in the English Premier League to demonstrate the outputs of the model. The authors argue that although the model is experimental, it still provides a useful platform to analyse performance of football clubs through further scientific investigation

Perspectives from those involved in healthy stadia

Healthy stadia is a growing agenda across industry and in turn academia. In this era of growth, much of the research literature is primarily sourced from academics with little contribution from applied and industry stakeholders. As such, the editors have sought to offer practitioners a platform to share novel projects, perspectives and preliminary intervention evaluation findings. This applied article intends to share evaluation and insight from applied practice, to encourage closer debate between the academic community and applied industry

Specialist role coaching and skill training periodisation: A football goalkeeping case study

© The Author(s) 2020. In sports like association football, professional teams are increasingly devoting resources to the role-based development of individual athletes and sub-groups. By employing ‘specialist coaches’ into athlete-support structures, clubs aim to facilitate individualised athlete training programs to enhance performance preparation as well as skill learning and talent development. Here, we discuss how contemporary pedagogical training approaches, like Nonlinear Pedagogy and the Constraints-Led approach, can enhance effectiveness of specialist role-based athlete development programs to facilitate performance functionality. We argue the need for a model of specialist role-based coaching practice in high performance sports organisations, based on a unified theoretical rationale, such as ecological dynamics. To exemplify the nature of specialist role-based coaching, a case study addresses how Nonlinear Pedagogy and Constraints-Led approach are being used for training professional football goalkeepers in an U23 years age group. Integrating key concepts from ecological dynamics, allied to principles of Nonlinear Pedagogy and the Constraints-Led approach, common skill training principles for specialist role coaches are highlighted. These illustrate the use of the recently introduced ‘Periodization of Skill Training’ framework for specialist role coaching, practically exemplifying a way to harness opportunities for performance enhancement and individualised talent development in the football goalkeeping context

Advancing our understanding of the EU sports policy: the socio-cultural model of sports regulation and players’ agents

This paper explains the development of the socio-cultural dimension of the European Union (EU) sports policy over the course of the decade from 2005 to 2015. By adopting the theoretical lenses of the Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF), the paper firstly offers a novel perspective on the belief systems of the members of the socio-cultural advocacy coalition that operates within the EU sports policy subsystem. A set of empirical policy core beliefs of the coalition actors reflecting their concerns regarding to sport’s integrity and economic welfare that affect its healthy development is presented and explained as the basic causes of the policy problem, i.e., threats that undermine sport’s specific characteristics. In this light, the paper then illustrates that the coalition members have perceived the issue of players’ agents, in particular problems in the activities of agents in European football, to be detrimental to the integrity of sport. As a result, the issue has been the subject of a considerable policy activity by the coalition actors with a view to establishing an alternative regulatory framework to effectively govern players’ agents. Consequently, the paper elucidates the evolving nature of the socio-cultural model of sports regulation that not only promotes the social role of sport in Europe but now also addresses the problems that affect its well-being and clear image. The paper’s principal method of investigation is based on the content analysis of official policy documents and statements of the coalition actors

Menstrual cycle impact and barriers 1 for football and futsal performance of Portuguese players – a survey-based cross-sectional study

The objective of this study was to investigate the perceived impact of the different phases of the menstrual cycle to football and futsal participation, and identify barriers that may limit performance and participation of Portuguese female players across competition levels. An online survey was conducted with the following inclusion criteria: registered participation in football or futsal in Portuguese official championships; age equal or superior to 18; and perceived regular menstrual cycles. A total of 197 answers were obtained and analysed. Most participants were 18-25 years old (61%) and 59% played futsal. Top-tier league players represented 15% of respondents, mid-tier 26% and low-tier 59%. For most respondents, the first three days of menstruation were perceived as having the most negative impact (66%), with abdominal pain, bloating, and breast tenderness being the most common symptoms. Players also associated the menstrual phase with decreased performance (endurance and power) and self-confidence, whereas they generally felt more confident and motivated during ovulation. No significant differences were found between sports (football and futsal) or competition levels in the perceived impact on performance and participation (p>0,05). Overall, 53% of the players reported perceived lack of knowledge and trust in their coach and other staff members to talk openly about menstrual health. The most cited external barrier to sports participation was the fear of leaking. To address the challenges identified five intervention levels were proposed: communication, comprehension, education, equipment and facilities. These findings emphasize the need for better communication, education, and structural support to reduce menstruation-related barriers

Score a goal for climate: Assessing the carbon footprint of travel patterns of the English Premier League clubs

Football is the most popular sport, globally and in the United Kingdom. However it generates a range of negative environmental impacts, such as climate change, due to an extensive amount of travel involved. The growing contribution of football clubs to the global carbon footprint has been recognised, but never consistently assessed. This study assesses the carbon footprint of the English Premier League (EPL)clubs, using the patterns of their domestic travel in the 2016/2017 season as a proxy for analysis. The study shows that, within the 2016/17 season, the EPL clubs produced circa 1134 tonnes of CO 2- eq. as a result of their travel, where transportation accounts for 61% of the carbon footprint. To reduce this carbon footprint, a careful review of the current corporate travel and procurement practices in the EPL clubs is necessary. This is in order to optimise the travel itineraries, prioritise more climate-benign modes of transport and contract budget accommodation providers with the ‘green’ credentials

To know it all? How party position knowledge varies between citizens, political parties, and policy issues : and why it matters

Abstract: In this dissertation, I examine how party position knowledge (PPK) varied during the 2019 Belgian federal elections. PPK is the factual & verifiable information about political parties\u2019 policy positions stored in people\u2019s memory. Representative democracy assumes that citizens are informed about the policy preferences of parties so that they can better align their choices with parties that reflect their own policy preferences (Pierce, 1999). However, previous research suggests that voters are generally uninformed about politics and that knowledge is not distributed equally (Bennett, 1995; Delli Carpini & Keeter, 1996). I replicate findings from previous research to examine how PPK varied between voters (inter-voter differences in PPK) during the 2019 Belgian elections. However, I also move beyond inter-voter variation and ask how party, issue, and voters\u2019 perceptions of these relate to voters\u2019 PPK (intra-voter differences in PPK). Finally, I ask how the clarity of party communication shapes what voters know about their issue positions. Empirically, the study draws on data from the RepResent Belgian Panel survey to develop a fine grained measure of PPK, inspired by a systematic exploration of previous research on PPK. I supplemented the voter data with a content analysis and party surveys. I find that that PPK varies with abilities (cognitive skills, education), motivation (interest, ideological extremity), and opportunities (media exposure). Older, highly educated, politically engaged men tend to have higher PPK. While traditional media exposure enhances PPK, reliance on social media does not significantly improve it. Beyond individual-level variables, I find PPK varies strongly with party and issue characteristics. Voters are more knowledgeable about traditional left-right issues, opposition parties, and ideologically extreme parties. Moreover, issue ownership perceptions\u2014the belief that certain parties are best suited to handle specific issues\u2014may enhance voters\u2019 ability to correctly identify party positions. Finally, party communication strategies may play a key role in shaping PPK. Voters are more knowledgeable about positions that are emphasised and consistently communicated in traditional media. This highlights how parties influence what voters know through message clarity