Research Hub
Open-access football research for coaches, analysts, and students
Curated papers on session planning, wearable technology, physical data, technical outcomes, and open football datasets, translated into coach-facing takeaways.
How to use this page
Read like a coach, not just a student
Find the football problemStart with the behaviour you care about: pressing, load, scanning, transition, technical quality, or session design.
Check the methodLook at who was studied, what was measured, and whether the context matches your players.
Turn it into a session questionAsk what you would change on the pitch: area, numbers, constraints, feedback, or measurement.
Wearable Technology
How to Use Global Positioning Systems Data to Monitor Training Load in the Real World of Elite Soccer
Frontiers in Physiology2020Open access
A practical paper on using GPS data to monitor external load in elite soccer environments.
Coach takeawayUseful for coaches who want to understand how GPS can support training design without turning every session into a numbers exercise.
GPSload monitoringtraining design
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Session Planning
Application of Technology for the Analysis of Small-Sided Games in Football
Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part P2024Open access
A review of how technology can help analyse small-sided games, including players, space, direction, goals, and feedback.
Coach takeawayUseful when designing practices because it shows how changing pitch size, numbers, goals, and feedback can change the physical and tactical picture.
small-sided gamessession designtechnology
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Session Planning
Designing Small-Sided Games for Counter-Attack Training in Youth Soccer
International Journal of Sports Science and Coaching2024Open access
Research on how small-sided game design can shape counter-attacking behaviour in youth soccer.
Coach takeawayA strong reference for coaches who want to connect constraints with tactical outcomes rather than just running a generic game.
counter-attackyouth soccerconstraints
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Technical Data
Technical and Tactical Soccer Players' Performance in Conceptual Small-Sided Games
Revista Brasileira de Cineantropometria e Desempenho Humano2015Open access
A study on how conceptual small-sided games can affect technical and tactical performance.
Coach takeawayUseful for coaches who want to justify game-based practices as a serious development tool, not just a fun end-of-session activity.
technical performancetactical behavioursmall-sided games
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Open Data
A Public Data Set of Spatio-Temporal Match Events in Soccer Competitions
Scientific Data2019Open access
An open football event dataset across multiple competitions, useful for learning analysis and data science workflows.
Coach takeawayA good starting point for analysts and students who want real football data for portfolio projects without using private club information.
open dataevent dataanalysis portfolio
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Physical Data
Analysis of Player Speed and Angle Toward the Ball in Soccer
Scientific Reports2024Open access
Research using player movement, speed, and angle toward the ball to understand football behaviour.
Coach takeawayUseful for coaches and analysts thinking about pressing, recovery runs, support angles, and how movement context changes physical data.
movementspeedphysical context
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Physical Data
Is It Worth the Effort? Understanding and Contextualizing Physical Metrics in Soccer
arXiv2022Open access preprint
A framework for linking physical metrics with technical and tactical value in soccer.
Coach takeawayUseful because it challenges the habit of treating running outputs as valuable without asking whether the action helped the team.
physical metricscontexttactical value
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Open Data
Common Data Format: A Standardized Format for Match-Data in Football
arXiv2025Open access preprint
A proposed standard for structuring football match data so it is clearer and easier to use across analysis workflows.
Coach takeawayUseful for analysts building portfolios or tools because good analysis depends on clean, contextualised data before any dashboard or model is built.
data structurematch dataanalysis workflow
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