A mathematics-based new penalty area in football: tackling diving

ABSTRACT

A novel penalty area (PA) for football (soccer) is proposed; it is based on considering mathematically the actual scoring possibility on the 2 dimensions near the goal. It is shown that the 150-year-old rectangular area is mathematically disproportionate; this can be causing too much diving or simulation by players around the goal and also too many matches that are decided unfairly. The goal or objective is to reduce these problems – and others – with a new PA based on the proposed scoring potential measure which is in turn based on the angle towards the goal line (between posts) and the distance to the centre of this line.     

关于我国足球“假赌黑”现象的探讨——以2009年中国足坛扫赌反黑风暴事件为视角

以2009年中国足坛扫赌反黑风暴事件为视角,并结合我国足坛历年来的假赌黑事件,对我国足球假赌黑发展过程及成因进行了深入研究。结果表明：中国足球假赌黑的形成受多方面因素的影响,其不单单是足球管理体制的问题,更是社会主义市场经济发展过程中各方面因素综合作用的结果。     

关于我国足球"假赌黑"现象的探讨——以2009年中国足坛扫赌反黑风暴事件为视角

以2009年中国足坛扫赌反黑风暴事件为视角,并结合我国足坛历年来的假赌黑事件,对我国足球假赌黑发展过程及成因进行了深入研究.结果表明:中国足球假赌黑的形成受多方面因素的影响,其不单单是足球管理体制的问题,更是社会主义市场经济发展过程中各方面因素综合作用的结果.     

Little United and the Big Society: negotiating the gaps between football,community and the politics of inclusion

The UK government’s Big Society vision is a source of fierce debate and controversy, particularly when set alongside severe austerity measures. This has revealed a glaring disconnect between rhetoric of empowered, inclusive communities and the burgeoning reality of cuts to publicly funded community provision. This puts pressure on organizations that rely on or promote volunteering as a means of participatory community inclusion, not just financially through loss of funding, but also potentially on ideological grounds. To explore this, research was conducted within the community projects of FC United of Manchester, a not-for-profit, cooperative, fan-owned, non-league English football club. Findings reveal extremely positive perceptions of its community and inclusivity work, with volunteering and the club’s ownership structure being seen as major factors in that success. Despite clear opposition to the coalition government’s policies, from a community inclusion perspective and on wider ideological grounds, the club aims to increase its capacity as a community provider, acknowledging the potential contradictions and conflicts this may bring.     

Ending traditions: football and the study of football in the 1990s

John Williams and Stephen Wagg (eds.), British Football and Social Change: Getting into Europe (Leicester: Leicester University Press, 1991). Pp.258. £13.99 (paper). ISBN 0–7185–1410–6.

Steve Redhead (ed.), The Passion and the Fashion: Football Fandom in the New Europe (Aldershot: Arena, 1993). Pp.205. £29.95 (cloth) and £12.95 (paper). ISBN 1–85628–462‐X; 1–85628–464–6.

Alex Fynn and Lynton Guest, Out of Time: Why Football isn't Working (London: Simon and Schuster Pocket Books, revised edition, 1994). Pp.xiii + 400. £5.99 (paper). ISBN 0–671–85087–3.

John Sugden and Alan Tomlinson (eds.), Hosts and Champions: Soccer Cultures, National Identities and the USA World Cup (Aldershot: Arena, 1994). Pp.323. £35.00 (cloth); £14.95 (paper). ISBN 1–85742–227–9; 1–85742–228–7.

Richard Giulianotti and John Williams (eds.), Game Without Frontiers: Football Identity and Modernity (Aldershot: Arena, 1994). Pp.381 £35.00 (cloth); £14.95 (paper). ISBN 1–85742–219–8, 1–85742–220–1.

Richard Haynes, The Football Imagination: The Rise of Football Fanzine Culture (Aldershot: Arena, 1995). Pp.xi + 169. £29.95 (cloth); £12.95 (paper). ISBN 1–85742–212–0; 1–85742–213–9     

Science and football: a review of applied research in the football codes

Over the last two decades there has been a growth in research directly related to football. Although most of this research is focused on soccer (association football), there has been a steady increase in publications related to the other football codes. There is evidence of more systematic training and selection influencing the anthropometric profiles of players who compete at the highest level. Fitness is being optimized to cope with match demands while accommodating the need for specific requirements of positional roles. There is evidence of work rate being higher in contemporary football games than in previous decades, with consequences for training and dietary practices. Notation analysis of actions during matches is now used regularly to provide detailed objective feedback on performance to players and coaches. Training regimens are designed for game-specific purposes where possible. Sports psychologists working in a football context have a more eclectic body of knowledge to draw from. In the professional soccer clubs, the rewards associated with a successful investment in youth academies have helped to focus attention on talent identification and development models. It is a challenge to those specializing in science and football to contribute to the success of such schemes.     

European football clubs and football betting among the youths in Nigeria

European football clubs are very popular social realities in Nigeria. Their existence and activities shape social relations, process and outcomes of well-being as well as socio-economic and policy orthodoxies. Unfortunately, social trajectories of well-being, economic ramifications and policies remain poorly understood in Nigeria. What some people are aware of is the popularity of the clubs and not the intensification of associated implications and policy remits in existential environments of their social spaces. This is particularly important as the domains of European football clubs’ presence in developing countries, especially Nigeria, are largely nascent and haphazard. Against this background, this article examined the phenomenon of football betting as an ancillary of European football clubs’ presence among the youths in Nigeria. This article makes important contribution to understanding of ways European football identities are interlinked to the increased popularity of betting syndicates especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. Research questions engaged include; what is the pattern involved in football betting among the youths? What are the factors facilitating football betting among the youths and What are the perceived developmental implications relative to well-being and social health in Nigeria? The Social Exchange theoretical tradition was adopted as theoretical framework. Data collection triangulated quantitative method (questionnaires) and qualitative methods. Relevant findings were made and valid conclusions were reached and presented in this article.     

Elite football on artificial turf versus natural grass: movement patterns, technical standards, and player impressions

The aim of the present study was to examine the movement patterns, ball skills, and the impressions of Swedish elite football players during competitive games on artificial turf and natural grass. Time - motion analyses (36 observations) and technical analyses (16 team observations) were performed and 72 male and 21 female players completed a questionnaire. No differences were observed between artificial turf and natural grass in terms of total distance covered (mean 10.19 km, s = 0.19 vs. 10.33 km, s = 0.23), high-intensity running (1.86 km, s = 0.10 vs. 1.87 km, s = 0.14), number of sprints (21, s = 1 vs. 22, s = 2), standing tackles (10, s = 1 vs. 11, s = 1) or headers per game (8, s = 1 vs. 8, s = 1), whereas there were fewer sliding tackles (P < 0.05) on artificial turf than natural grass (2.1, s = 0.5 vs. 4.3, s = 0.6). There were more short passes (218, s = 14 vs. 167, s = 12) and midfield-to-midfield passes (148, s = 11 vs. 107, s = 8) (both P < 0.05) on artificial turf than natural grass. On a scale of 0-10, where 0 = "better than", 5 = "equal to", and 10 = "worse than", the male players reported a negative overall impression (8.3, s = 0.2), poorer ball control (7.3, s = 0.3), and greater physical effort (7.2, s = 0.2) on artificial turf than natural grass. In conclusion, the running activities and technical standard were similar during games on artificial turf and natural grass. However, fewer sliding tackles and more short passes were performed during games on artificial turf. The observed change in playing style could partly explain the male players' negative impression of artificial turf.     

Errors in judging "offside" in association football: test of the optical error versus the perceptual flash-lag hypothesis

The objective of this study was to analyse the correctness of the offside judgements of the assistant referees during the final round of the FIFA 2002 World Cup. We also contrasted two hypotheses to explain the errors in judging offside. The optical error hypothesis is based on an incorrect viewing angle, while the flash-lag hypothesis refers to perceptual errors associated with the flash-lag effect (i.e. a moving object is perceived as spatially leading its real position at a discrete instant signalled by a briefly flashed stimulus). Across all 64 matches, 337 offsides were analysed using digital video technology. The error percentage was 26.2%. During the first 15 min match period, there were significantly more errors (38.5%) than during any other 15 min interval. As predicted by the flash-lag effect, we observed many more flag errors (86.6%) than non-flag errors (13.4%). Unlike the predictions of the optical error hypothesis, there was no significant difference between the correct and incorrect decisions in terms of the positioning of the assistant referees relative to the offside line (0.81 and 0.77 m ahead, respectively). To reduce the typical errors in judging offside, alternative ways need to be considered to teach assistant referees to better deal with flash-lag effects.     

Science and the Gaelic sports: Gaelic football and hurling

Abstract

The two major sports indigenous to Ireland are Gaelic football and hurling. Both are 15-a-side field games played on a pitch 40% longer than a soccer field. They are firmly linked to a nationalist tradition and have by far the highest participation rates in sports in the country. Both games make multiple demands on participants due to their free-flowing nature and quick movement of play from end to end of the pitch. Hurling calls for hand–eye coordination and skilled use of the hurling stick in hitting and blocking the ball. Fitness characteristics mirror game demands. Participants at elite level in both games display high aerobic power, the footballers tending to be stronger in the upper body and better in vertical jumping. Gaelic footballers in particular match the fitness characteristics of professional soccer players, except for sprinting speed. Less attention has been paid to female participants, especially in camogie, the female version of hurling. Despite their amateur status, and due to the popularity of the sports and the training regimens adopted by players, the games have garnered sports science support systems for elite performers. Support personnel benefit from a generic knowledge base as well as a burgeoning research agenda targeted at the Gaelic games.     

YO-YO间歇测试与足球运动员比赛跑动能力关联研究

目的:检验YO-YO测试与足球比赛跑动分析系统的信度与效度,探索YO-YO测试结果与比赛跑动能力的关系。方法:对24名国家男子足球队运动员进行YO-YO测试,对他们在16场国际比赛中的跑动能力进行研究,获取了每名运动员的YO-YO测试结果与比赛中的各种跑动参数。结果:YO-YO测试具有较高的重测信度(r=0.98)和较低的变异系数(8.7%),运动员的测试成绩由于位置不同表现出一定的差异性。SIMI跑动分析系统具有较好的稳定性,观察者内部与观察者之间的变异系数均小于3%,运动员比赛中的跑动能力也由于位置不同表现出一定的差异,且下半场跑动能力下降。YO-YO测试成绩与比赛跑动总距离、有氧高强度跑、无氧高强度跑、冲刺跑频数表现出较高的相关性(r=0.79,P<0.01;r=0.85,P<0.05;r=0.70,P<0.05;r=0.78,P<0.01),而与冲刺跑距离不存在显著相关(r=0.30,P>0.05)。结论:YO-YO测试与比赛跑动分析系统均具有较好的测试信度与效度;YO-YO测试能够反映与比赛密切相关的运动员体能,二者存在高度相关,可作为监测运动员体能变化的一项重要指标。     

中国足球改革诠释——对《中国足球改革发展总体方案》的思考

当下的足球改革是建国以来力度最大、思想最深刻、变动最彻底、最具创新意义的综合性的体育与社会变革行为,具有超体育、超文化和超当下的积极意义。足球改革不仅是完善职业化、市场化模式,也是一场新型的文化建设运动,成为重新缔造中国国民性的崭新动力。文章分析了中国足球改革方案的内容,重点探讨了足球改革的原因、目的以及实质,认为足球改革是中央全面深化改革领导小组习近平治国理政思想的具体体现,整个方案体现了共治、共资、共享的精神,体现了足球革新社会、带动社会整体进步的内在价值,能够为社会变革提供更为广阔的视角。     

Science and Gaelic football: A review

This review focuses on Gaelic football and scientific reports of the characteristics of its players and the demands of the game. Anthropometric characteristics vary according to positional role, but top players display high muscularity and good all-round fitness at the peak of the competitive season. Match analysis indicates that exercise intensity is roughly equivalent to that for professional soccer. Average heart rates are approximately 160 beats· min-1 during competitive matches, and average oxygen consumption is about 72% of maximum. Metabolic fatigue in active muscles is unlikely. Conventional biomechanical and electromyographic techniques are useful in gaining insight into individual games skills. Inadequate attention has been given to injury prevention and to psychological aspects of the game. Although possessing unique characteristics, Gaelic football has many similarities with other football codes, especially Australian Rules football where the ball is played by both hands and feet and where tackling is permitted.     

Commentary: the first 20 years of Soccer and Society

Soccer and Society was the first, and remains the only, international academic journal that is focused on a single sport. In anticipation of the vicennial volume, I offer here a snapshot of this journal’s content over its first 20 years. This commentary is part-audit and part-personal observation of the main themes, countries, tournaments, leagues and clubs that have featured, and on the gender of those who have written for the journal. The aim here is to offer a timely reflection on those elements within football that have been well served and those which have been under-represented. After briefly outlining the purpose of academic journals, I present the findings of this audit and conclude with some questions on the next 20 years.