Head movement direction in football - a field study on visual scanning activity during the UEFA-U17 and -U21 European Championship 2019.

Visual exploration (scanning) of one's environment is a key aspect in team sports. Based on Gibson's (1979) ecological approach of visual perception, this study aims to advance the understanding of scanning by focusing on the direction of head movements in football and its implications for subsequent on-ball actions. The video-based data analysis consisted of nine selected matches and 162 players of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) U17 and U21 European Championship 2019.

Modeling Players' Scanning Activity in Football.

The purpose of this study was to develop and test models of scanning activity in football. Gibson's ecological approach of visual perception and exploratory activity provided the theoretical framework for the models. The video-based data analysis consisted of 17 selected matches and 239 players of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) U17 and U19 European Championship 2018 and the UEFA U17 and U21 European Championship 2019.

Scanning activity of elite football players in 11 vs. 11 match play: An eye-tracking analysis on the duration and visual information of scanning.

Visual perception in football ("soccer" in the U.S.) is increasingly becoming a key area of interest for researchers and practitioners.

Scanning activity in elite youth football players.

The purpose of this study was to analyse the scanning behaviour of elite youth football players across different playing positions and age groups during high-level matches. Data was obtained by filming the 2018 UEFA European U17 and U19 Championship semi-finals and finals. A total of 53 outfield players from the four teams that reached the finals were analysed in both their respective semi-final and final matches, resulting in a total of 1686 attacking play situations.

What Do Football Players Look at? An Eye-Tracking Analysis of the Visual Fixations of Players in 11 v 11 Elite Football Match Play.

Current knowledge of gaze behavior in football has primarily originated from eye-tracking research in laboratory settings. Using eye-tracking with elite players in a real-world 11 v 11 football game, this exploratory case study examined the visual fixations of midfield players in the Norwegian premier league. A total of 2,832 fixations by five players, aged 17-23 years ( = 19.

Scanning, Contextual Factors, and Association With Performance in English Premier League Footballers: An Investigation Across a Season.

Scanning in football (soccer) denotes an active head movement where a player's face is temporarily directed away from the ball to gather information in preparation for subsequently engaging with the ball. The aim of this study was to learn more about the ways that 27 elite professional football players in an English Premier League club use scanning in competitive matches, the conditions under which this behavior is exhibited, and the relationships between these behaviors and performance. Players were filmed across 21 matches, producing a total number of 9,574 individual ball possessions for analysis.

Constraints on visual exploration of youth football players during 11v11 match-play: The influence of playing role, pitch position and phase of play.

Visual exploratory action, in which football players turn their head to perceive their environment, improves prospective performance with the ball during match-play. This scanning action, however, is relevant for players throughout the entire match, as the information perceived through visual exploration is needed to guide movement around the pitch during both offensive and defensive play. This study aimed to understand how a player's on-pitch position, playing role and phase of play influenced the visual exploratory head movements of players during 11v11 match-play.

Don't Turn Blind! The Relationship Between Exploration Before Ball Possession and On-Ball Performance in Association Football.

Visual exploratory action - scanning movements expressed through left and right rotation of the head - allows perception of a surrounding environment and supports prospective actions. In the dynamically changing football environment, the extent to which exploratory action benefits a player's subsequent performance with the ball is likely influenced by how and when the exploratory action occurs. Although few studies have examined the relationship between visual exploration and on-pitch football performance, it has been reported that a higher frequency of exploratory head movement up to 10-s before receiving the ball increases the likelihood of successful performance with the ball.

On winning the "lottery": psychological preparation for football penalty shoot-outs.

The outcome of penalty shoot-outs is often referred to as a "lottery", suggesting that luck, rather than the skill level of the player, predetermines outcome success. Throughout this article, we hope to show why such attitudes towards physical and psychological preparation can increase anxiety, diminish perceptions of control and negatively affect the behaviour and subsequent performance of penalty takers. From the synthesis of this evidence, we provide task-specific recommendations that are structured around the dynamic nature of emotions that players are likely to experience during each phase of the shoot-out and which can be implemented or adapted to suit the individual needs of the player.

From childhood to senior professional football: elite youth players' engagement in non-football activities.

Abstract Despite the large amount of research available on how engagement in football practice relates to future performance level among football players, similar information about the contribution of non-football activities is scarce. Based on data from 745 elite youth players this study aimed to identify the characteristics and contribution of diverse participation towards elite youth and senior professional status. The data were collected using a retrospective questionnaire where the players reported the amount of time spent in other sports than football, in addition to their perceived contribution of different non-football activities for developing football skills.

Coaches' and players' perceptions of training dose: not a perfect match.

Purpose: The aim of the current study was to investigate and compare coaches' and players' perceptions of training dose for a full competitive season.

Methods: Session rating of perceived exertion (RPE), duration, and training load (session RPE × duration) of 33 professional soccer players (height 178.2 ± 6.

Effective learning among elite football players: the development of a football-specific self-regulated learning questionnaire.

The present study aimed to develop a football-specific self-report instrument measuring self-regulated learning in the context of daily practice, which can be used to monitor the extent to which players take responsibility for their own learning. Development of the instrument involved six steps: 1. Literature review based on Zimmerman's (2006) theory of self-regulated learning, 2.

Team history and choking under pressure in major soccer penalty shootouts.

This study examined the links between historical team results and individual players' subsequent performances in a high-pressure real-world sport situation. Videos were obtained from all soccer penalty shootouts held in two major international tournaments (World Cup and European Championships) between 1976 and 2006 (n=260 players/309 kicks), and we controlled for team ability and country. The results showed that players on teams with preceding losses performed worse and generally took their shots more quickly than players on teams with preceding wins.

Emotional contagion in soccer penalty shootouts: celebration of individual success is associated with ultimate team success.

We examined the association between celebratory responses after successful soccer penalty kicks and the outcome of a penalty shootout. Individually displayed post-shot behaviours in penalty shootouts held in World Cups and European Championships (N = 151) were rated on the presence of universally distinct and recognizable behaviours associated with positive emotions. Using chi-square analyses we investigated which behaviours were associated with winning the shootout, when the relative standing between the teams was equal.

Why do English players fail in soccer penalty shootouts? A study of team status, self-regulation, and choking under pressure.

I examine why players from some nations appear always to choke in major international soccer penalty shootouts. Based on a model on choking under pressure as a type of self-defeating behaviour (Baumeister, 1997), I hypothesized that highly favourable public appraisals of a team would be linked to displays of escapist self-regulation strategies and inferior performance. I selected the eight most merited European nations, obtained videos from penalty shootouts in two major international tournaments (World Cup and European Championships), and analysed all 200 shots taken by players representing these teams.

Avoidance motivation and choking under pressure in soccer penalty shootouts.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between shot valence, avoidance behavior, and performance in soccer penalty shootouts. Video analyses were conducted with all penalty shootouts ever held in the World Cup, the European Championships, and the UEFA Champions League (n = 36 shootouts, 359 kicks). Shot valence was assessed from the potential consequences of a shot outcome as follows: Shots where a goal instantly leads to victory were classified as positive valence shots and shots where a miss instantly leads to loss as negative valence shots.

Kicks from the penalty mark in soccer: the roles of stress, skill, and fatigue for kick outcomes.

The soccer "penalty shootout" in the knock-out phase of major international tournaments is one of the most dramatic events in international soccer. The outcome of these kicks is typically attributed to factors such as psychology (e.g.