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Background: The aim of the present study was to examine the spatial relations between teams (macro-level) and groups of players (meso-level) that afford successful penetrative passes (off-ball advantage) in elite football., Methods: Three balanced home matches from a Premier League team with 91 ball possessions in which a pass was performed into the opposition defensive area and overpassed the first defensive line, promoting a perturbation of the defensive team equilibrium, were selected for analysis. The spatial relations between teams were measured through spatial variables that captured the areas occupied by the teams, while the spatial relations between players were measured through variables that captured the distances and angles between attacking and defending players near the ball., Results: Results revealed, at the macro-level, higher values of width ratio between teams and the width of the attacking team for unsuccessful penetrative passes (UPP), when compared to successful penetrative passes (SPP). At the meso-level, a general decrease in distances and an increase in angles between attacking and defending players were observed between successful to unsuccessful penetrative passes., Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of using positional data analysis to identify teams' tactical profiles and to potentiate coaches' interventions.

Objectives: This study examined the peak physical and physiological (heart rate) performance intensities andassociated decrements in elite soccer referees during match play., Design: Longitudinal study., Methods: Physical performancevariables and heart rate were analyzed during 457 matches across two seasons. Differences between halves, and the rate ofdecline in peak performance intensities across moving average durations of 1-10 minutes were assessed using linear mixed models and power-law analysis, respectively., Results: Large significant differences were observed between halves for mean total distance, mean velocity, mean heart rate, and percentage of maximal heart rate (p ≤ 0.05; r = 0.51-0.64). Peak intensities (p ≤ 0.05; r = 0.15-0.17) and the rate of decline (p < 0.001; r = 0.17-0.37) were significantly higher in the 2 nd half compared to the 1 st half, for relative total distance, relative high-intensity running and mean velocity. The rate of decline was significantly greater in the 2 nd half than the 1 st half for relative distance covered by high-intensity acceleration (>2 m/s -2 /min), deceleration (<-2 m/s -2 /min), and relative mean heart rate (p < 0.001; r = 0.28-0.61). Elite soccer referees might have experienced transient fatigue during match play, as relative high-intensity running immediately following the most intense 5-minute period significantly declined by 61.2% ( p< 0.001; r = 0.94), and was 16.2% lower than the mean 5-minute period (p < 0.001; r = 0.34)., Conclusions: Increased physical and physiological demands during match play, with associated declines in the second half and transient signs of fatigue throughout the match, supports the inclusion of high-intensity interval and endurance training programs to prepare soccer referees for the intensity demands and peak performance outcomes of match play., Competing Interests: Declaration of interest statement None., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: With the growing scientific interest in women's football it is critical to understand the match demands and fatigue patterns during a top-class women's competition., Methods: Physical characteristics and performance of top-class women football matches during the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was investigated from data collected using global positioning system for 21 outfield players during the tournament., Results: Relative total distance (TD; m·min -1 ) was moderately lower (P≤0.05, ES:0.6) in the final match (96.1±5.0 m·min -1 ) compared to the first (104.1±5.9 m·min -1 ) match. Performance in relative total high-speed running (THSR; m·min -1 ) declined -27.5% (P≥0.05) throughout the tournament following peak performance in the third match (M3) (5.3±1.7 m·min -1 ). Match performance between halves was reduced -25.4±0.13% (P≤0.05, ES:1.2-2.3) across all measures in M3. Relative high-intensity running (HIR; 25.9±3.5 m·min -1 ) and THSR (9.8±1.5 m·min -1 ) were greater (P≤0.05, ES:0.2-0.7) for forwards, while midfielders performed greater (P≤0.05, ES:0.6) relative total distance (102.0±5.5 m·min -1 ), compared to central defenders (HIR: 16.1±3.7 m·min -1 ; THSR: 3.1±1.6 m·min -1 ; TD: 92.5±5.7 m·min -1 ). Reductions in relative HIR between halves (-10.9%), within the first half (-31.0%), and the start and end of the match (-36.9%) were most pronounced for midfielders (P≤0.05, ES:0.6-2.3). Across all matches, relative THSR performance was reduced, with moderate to large differences (P≤0.001, ES: 0.7-0.8) observed between halves, within the first half, and throughout the match., Conclusions: In conclusion, specific fatigue patterns observed within and between matches throughout the women's World Cup, may be influenced by playing positions, the rank of the opposition, as well as the stage of the tournament.