Applied Sport Science for Performance Improvements in Football

Participation in football has consistently been greater than any other sport for decades. For example, only in 2007, there were 265 million people participate in football. Similarly, audiences for televised live matches remain exceptionally high and growing. The reasons for such interest in this “beautiful” game may lie in the passion it evokes in players and fans alike, the simplicity and availability of the sport, the low scoring nature maintains competitiveness until the end, and perhaps the complexity of the tactical nuances satisfies the problem-solving interest of many. It is not surprising, therefore, that football has interested sports scientists, although many would point to the division between academically robust research found in academic journals and conference proceedings, and the practical work undertaken in football clubs.

The aim of this Research Topic is to invite manuscripts from all forms of sports science, e.g. biomechanics, physiology, performance analysis, motion analysis, talent identification, coaching philosophy, injury, and psychology; where any code of football has been investigated, with a view to developing methods that can be of value to theory and practice. Some exposition of how the methods could be developed in a practical sense would be essential to demonstrate the value of the paper to this article collection.