Certificado en ANALISTA TÁCTICO DE FÚTBOL

Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test and its relationship with other field tests for footballers

Measurement is as important as the test chosen to do so. Not all tests assess the same parameters, which makes it difficult to choose the right one.

Conflicts of interest: the influence sponsors in sports cancellations

Never in the modern history of sports were major sporting events expected to be cancelled or postponed. Neither those that are planned long in advance, such as the Olympics, nor those happening every year, such as the national and international leagues.

New opportunities in the day after: sponsorship contracts in 2021

2020 was going to be a historic year for sports sponsorship. Major sponsors have kept their investments, while companies that were most affected by the pandemic have drastically reduced their advertising and sponsorship budgets.

Evolution of the Technical Performance of Players in the UEFA Champions League

Football is a constantly evolving sport. The modification of the rules of the game, the emergence of new tactics and the improvement in the players’ technical cause changes in performance and in the teams.

The effects of a ketogenic diet on athletes

Nutrition plays an essential role for an athletes’ performance and health. One of the nutrients athletes pay more attention to, are carbohydrates.

The Role of the Immune System in Sports Performance

The immune system is our body’s defence system against external elements such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi.

What is exercise-induced muscle damage?

Exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) can have important consequences for the performance of athletes as it is associated with muscle pain and a decrease of the neuromuscular function.

Blood flow restriction to improve performance and injury recovery

Blood flow restriction or BFR has become popular in the last few years in the training and physical therapy field.

The Effects of Confinement on Athletes

Many countries have had to implement numerous preventive strategies due to the pandemic, and confinement is one of the most notable ones.

RPE and its relationship with the risk of injury in footballers

Overtime, the competitive distance among elite football teams has shortened, so the focus is currently on those aspects that can tip the scale to one side or the other.

Education and elite athletes in the 21st century

New study methodologies of the 21st century and an unexpected change due to the pandemic is setting the stage for change.

Multinaming: When a Giant Looks for a Stadium

The third source of income for a club’s sponsorship, is the naming rights of the stadium.

An Impossible Boxing Day: Why European Football Stops at Christmas

European football fans ask themselves this question every single Christmas. Why aren’t there matches on?

Changes in Muscle Glycogen Stores during a Football Match

Glycogen plays a key role in sports performance. During exercise, especially when performed at high intensity, the glycolytic metabolism takes on a special relevance.

Technologies that will define the stadiums of the future

Digital tech is one of the fastest growing areas in sports stadium management.

Apps to assess and monitor athletic performance

The routine monitoring of training loads and athletes’ fitness is an essential process to ensure an optimal performance progression.

Engaging Children in Sports

Children need physical activity every day. Exercise leads to improved physical and emotional health.

Competition in the sports technology game is here to stay

Technology is changing the world of sport in many ways and its use is growing rapidly.

The Incidence of Patellar Tendinopathy in Professional Football

Last year, the 30th of December, FC Barcelona issued a statement making it official that its goalkeeper Marc-André Ter Stegen suffered from tendinopathy in the right knee that required treatment

Which exercises work best to prevent muscle injuries in football?

Injuries are a major concern in football. Among all, muscle injuries are the most frequent ones, more than receiving a blow, fractures and joint injuries.

Localized Bioimpedance (L-BIA) to Distinguish and Quantify Muscle Injury Severity

Muscle injuries involve more than 30 % of injuries in professional football players.

The Role of Carbohydrates in Football

Carbohydrates are one of the fundamental nutrients for all living organisms, together with proteins and fats.

Nutrition Taken to Sports Practice

Athletes must ask themselves what to eat, when to eat and how much to eat. They must adjust to the day they train more or less, or to whether they are in preseason, in full competition or out of season.

An intelligent Camp Nou management system which will help enhance other venues

The IoTwins project, financed by the European Union in its Horizon 2020 programme, will be used to develop an Espai Barça management tool.

Gil Rodas: “Barça medical services have to be prudent, but never conservative”

Their mission at Barça is to work outside the immediacy of everyday life. Not to look just at the next game or the next season, but by means of the scientific method to look miles beyond the present, within a decade.

The era of consolidating global strategies arrives

The strategy of major sports clubs is to consolidate the global impact they have had in recent years.

Sports Tomorrow – Day 10

For the second year, FC Barcelona -​​through the Barça Innovation Hub- have presented their annual data analysis guide that compiles relevant information and advances made in this field.

Sports Tomorrow – Day 9

“For twelve years, Barça has had most possession in 887 of 902 games”

Sports Tomorrow – Day 8

“We are taking eSports to real sport and it will help to make children less sedentary”

Sports Tomorrow – Day 7

“The big challenge with data analysis is getting it done in real time”

Sports Tomorrow – Day 6

“Brain training is not about disconnecting it from emotions, but about having them at the right time”

Sports Tomorrow – Day 5

“The coach of the future will be like the manager of a company, but employed by a football club”

Sports Tomorrow – Day 4

Technology, business, analytics, medicine and more at the fourth day of Sports Tomorrow.

SPORTS TOMORROW – DAY 3

A new day of Sports tomorrow ended, learn a little more about the topics presented by the speakers on the virtual stage.

Sports tomorrow – Day 2

Leading specialists analyzed different topics in a new Sports Tomorrow day.

“I never stop learning in sport, and neither do I want to, because I want to stay associated to it for the rest of my life”

Barça Innovation Hub’s Sports Tomorrow event has been opened by Pau Gasol.

Effects of heading the ball on the health of footballers

Forensic neuropathologist Bennet Omalu had no idea that the autopsy he was about to perform would turn the all-powerful National Football League on its head.

Active recovery vs. passive recovery

It is important to assure a correct recovery between training sessions and even between the different exercises of the same session to maximize adaptations to training.

CAN BREATH HOLDING IMPROVE PERFORMANCE?

The Mexico 1968 Olympic Games represented a turning point in altitude training. Due to the dominance of athletes acclimatised to the altitude during the Games (they were held at an altitude of 2,340 m),1 in the 1970s, the implications of training or living in hypoxic conditions to improve performance started to be studied.

NEUROBIOLOGY OF DECISION-MAKING IN SPORTS

In 2008, neuroscientist John-Dylan Haynes conducted a set of experiments at the Bernstein Centre for Computational Neuroscience (Berlin) with the goal to learn more about the mechanisms of free will in human beings.

IS THE SPRINT A FRIEND OR AN ENEMY IN THE PLAYER’S TRAINING?

One of the main characteristics in football nowadays is the increase in actions performed at high speed. Its importance is such that, in most cases, goals and decisive actions are preceded by sprints.

THE ROLE OF THE NUTRITIONIST AND SPORTS PSYCHOLOGIST DURING INJURY RECOVERY

The first question that almost all players ask after getting injured is: “When will I be able to play again?” The return to the pitch or return to play (RTP) is seen as that magical day in which the player returns to fully enjoy the sport, at the same level or even better than before, as if the injury had never occurred.

A METROPOLITAN OR URBAN STADIUM?

A year ago, one of the greatest experts in European football stadiums, Paul Fletcher, published a research about the impact of these buildings to the urban environment. He analysed the cities that had been home to the UEFA Champions League in the last decade, suggesting many interesting insights.

VITAMINE D IN ATHLETES

Nutrition plays an essential role in the athletes’ performance and health. However, the focus is often placed on some variables such as energy consumption or adequate intake of macronutrients (proteins, carbohydrates, and fats), leaving out the important role of other elements such as vitamins.

KICK4LIFE: FOOTBALL CLUB CREATED FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

Football has a huge ability to transform society. However, as the greater clubs are the stars of
today, we often look only at the ability of their star players as trend creators, or at the analysis of teams’ sports success.

STRATEGIES BASED ON EXERCISING TO PREVENT MUSCLE INJURY IN FOOTBALL

Injuries, specially muscle injuries, are a great concern in sports as they represent the main cause of interruption for athletes.

SLOW VS. FAST REPS

A training programme planning includes the handling of variables such as exercise selection, training volume and intensity, movement speed, rest interval or the duration of a repetition.

DO GOOD, DO RIGHT: THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN SPORTS

Teams, athletes and sports clubs have supported charitable causes for a long time. They are rooted in their communities and have the obligation to support them.

A step forward in the classification of muscle injuries

Muscle injuries are one of the main concerns in sports performance.

Player’s motivation in tough situations

Stadio Olímpico, Rome, in 2009. Manchester United and FC Barcelona are getting ready to play against each other in the Champions League Final.

Caffeine and performance, does it work for everybody?

There are several supplements to improve sports performance. However, only a few of them are scientifically proven to be effective.

Training load and performance in basketball: The more the better?

Professional basketball is evolving towards playing more matches, reaching up to 90 games per season.

A new tool to control muscle load in football players

Professional football players have some particular physiological characteristics which allow them to run an average of 10-12 km per match as well as reaching speeds above 30 km/h.

Filling the void in games without an audience

For the 2020-2021 season, European football has suffered an estimated loss of 4 billion Euros, the NBA has calculated 500 million dollars, the NFL 1,300, and the MLB 200.

Monitoring fatigue with blood markers. The case of the German National Team in World Cups and European Championships

The international tournaments of national teams represent an important change in the players’ regular workload.

Appealing to Gen Z, the Greatest Challenge in Professional Sport

Right now, the question is inevitable: How can we make a one hundred and fifty-year-old sport, with rules that have remained unchanged, attractive for a generation that has grown up surrounded by screens.

Is Training Different in Each Country?

Possibly, the most important goal in training is helping the players to develop skills and behaviours to improve their performance during competition.

What factors are involved in hamstrings injury?

Hamstrings injury is the most frequent muscle injury in sports that require high speeds, such as football, rugby or American football.

2020 is proving to be a year of challenges and changes to the way we live, work and play

With the pandemic affecting us all across the globe, we are having to adapt to different ways of living and working. And this is no different in the world of sport.

Exercise and muscle damage, how can nutrition help?

Exercise-induced muscle damage and the consequent muscle pain, commonly known as ‘stiffness’, conditions our performance.

What is the energy expenditure of a goalkeeper?

The training adaptations depend on the specificity of stimuli generated during the session. In football, there is a player that differs from the rest: the goalkeeper.

Monetising a closed stadium nowadays

The pandemic has taken away what is most important within stadiums, the audience.

Training loads throughout the season in the Premier League

The physical demands in professional football have increased in recent years. The game is shifting towards an increase both in the distance that players cover in a match and in the intensity at which they execute their actions.

The Strength-Speed-Power Profile during competition

One of the main characteristics of elite football players is their ability to perform different actions at maximum speed. Its importance is such that most goals are preceded by sprints.

Philosophy: a science that was born from sport

We have a completely wrong idea of how philosophy was born. The image of wise men who never got up from their seats clung to their academies and universities, has little to do with philosophers like Socrates, one of its greatest representatives.

Can Preseason Reduce the Risk of Injury?

Preseason goals in elite football are diverse. It is about testing, “measuring forces with other teams” and developing the physical abilities of the players to prepare them in the best way possible for the demands of the season.

Nota de Prueba

POST LANDING CONTRIBUTORS 4

POST LANDING CONTRIBUTORS 3

POST LANDING CONTRIBUTORS 2

Post Landing Contributors 1

The subacromial impingement syndrome does not alter the order of muscle activation during physiological movements of the shoulder

Shoulder problems are quite common, with 30% of people suffering pain in this part of the body at some moment in their lives.

COVID-19 WILL ACCELERATE A REFORM IN THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL

There are two clear lessons we have learned from the pandemic: empty stadiums also empty football’s spirit, and leagues cannot be played in a normal condition if there is a permanent threat of disease.

THE STADIUM WITH THE SMALLEST CARBON FOOTPRINT EVER BUILT

There are two things that the president of the Forest Green Rovers, does not admit in his football club: that players eat red meat, or that fans can buy it at the stadium.

GOVERNANCE TO MANAGE THE FUTURE OF ATHLETICS

If there is a competition that can be matched in appeal to the Olympics, it is the World Athletics Championships.

HOW THE OLYMPIC GAMES ARE POSTPONED

Covid-19 has subjected the International Olympic Committee and its headquarters in Tokyo to an unprecedented situation, and one of the greatest challenges for governance in modern sport.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG PLAYERS. SPECIALIZATION OR MULTISPORT?

One of the most common debates among sports agents dedicated to talent training has to do with the convenience of young athletes’ early specialisation.

WHEN SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE AND THE PLAYERS’ BELIEFS DO NOT MATCH

Players’ beliefs may clash with scientific evidence that often supports coaching staff intervention routines.

HEAT ACCLIMATISATION AND PERFORMANCE

Athletes often face adverse weather conditions in their competitions. One of the most worrying factors for coaches and athletes is heat.

METABOLITES: A NEW BIOMARKER TO OPTIMIZE PERFORMANCE

Monitoring and quantifying the plethora of internal and external factors associated with performance allows us to better understand training adaptations and, based on these, make adjustments of the players’ condition.

MUSCLE INJURY PREVENTION IN ELITE FOOTBALL PLAYERS, WHAT EXERCISES WORK?

Muscle injuries are a major concern in the world of football. Therefore, the focus on preventive strategies for muscular injuries is fundamental.

NETWORK THEORY CAN BE APPLIED IN TECHNICAL DECISION MAKING

Applying network theory to football is simply one more method to obtain additional information about a football match.

DIFFERENTIAL ASPECTS OF FEMALE PHYSIOLOGY IN TEAM SPORTS FOR LOAD MONITORING

The rise of women in sports started years ago, and it is expected to continue growing at all levels. It now corresponds to science to respond to the specificity necessary to apply, in order to adapt its performance.

WHAT DOES THE CARE FOR ATHLETES’ IMMUNE SYSTEMS TEACH US?

The confinement situation we are currently leaving behind, as it has been reported by multiple media sources, supposed a threat to the immune system.

ÁNGEL CAPPA, THE COACH AT THE CENTRE OF FOOTBALL

Cappa’s fundamental premise is to approach football without fear. You cannot coach a team ruled by fear of its rivals.

PART II: THE STORY BEHIND THE COLLABORATION BETWEEN WIMU AND BARÇA

When the black vests worn by the first football team caught the attention of the press in 2017, Barça Innovation Hub was already in the process to further develop the EPTS WIMU PRO.

PART I: THE STORY BEHIND THE COLLABORATION BETWEEN WIMU AND BARÇA

One of the pioneering teams to adopt this system was FC Barcelona, thanks to the initiative from of its technical staff, and the partnership with Real Track Systems and its WIMU PRO device.

A SMART DEVICE TO TRAIN ATHLETES

While FC Barcelona’s training sessions take place, their trainers follow on-screen a complex series of graphics, which correspond to the individual performance of the player and the result of the plays they practice in group.

THE DAY ERIC BECAME A FORWARD

Barça Foundation started its pilot program against bullying for primary school students.

THE INCIDENCE OF TENDINOPATHY IN FC BARCELONA’S TEAM SPORTS

Tendinopathies are estimated to represent approximately 30% of musculoskeletal consultations.

HOW PIXELLOT’S AI TECHNOLOGY WORKS TO STREAMLINE WORKFLOWS AT FC BARCELONA

Barça Innovation Hub (BIHUB) has partnered with Pixellot to develop new systems for automated recording of training sessions and games.

A PIONEERING STUDY IN PATELLAR TENDINOPATHY: TREATMENT WITH BONE MARROW MESENCHYMAL STEM CELLS

Patellar tendinopathy – pain and degeneration in the patellar tendon – is a frequent injury among athletes.

THE ROLE OF THE SPORTS DOCTOR AFTER THE RETURN TO COMPETITION IN FOOTBALL

The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) health crisis has made our society take extraordinary measures affecting all aspects of our lives, and sport could not be less.

THE MEAL BEFORE A GAME

Food plays a fundamental role in all aspects of our life and it is especially important before a game.

THE IMPORTANCE OF TEAM LEADERS GIVING CONFIDENCE TO THE TEAM

The success of team leaders has a lot to do with their ability to inspire and empower the team.

DO NET-ZERO ENERGY STADIUMS EXIST?

It was in the 2014 World Cup when we knew about the first net-zero energy stadium.

MATT TABERNER’S “CONTROL-CHAOS CONTINUUM” REHABILITATION AFTER INJURY MODEL

As a team’s success is greatly determined by player availability, injuries may exert a great influence upon the team’s results throughout a season, subsequently affecting the team’s final league position and the club’s financial income.

HOW CAN PLAYING WITHOUT AN AUDIENCE AFFECT THE MATCH RESULT?

The return of the competition almost three months later includes a change in the regulation that allows a maximum of 5 substitutions per game and a bigger number of players can be called.

FOOTBALL VISUALISATION: CAPTURING CHAOS AND CULTIVATING CONTEXT

Data visualisation or what is commonly referred to as ‘data viz’ is a tool that translates trends effectively using graphics.

THE MOST MATHEMATICAL OF SPORTS?

At the Barca Sports Technology Symposium, I had the honour of chairing a session about taking data into the field in sports.

COOPERATION BETWEEN DOCTORS AND COACHES, IS KEY TO MINIMISE THE RISK OF RELAPSE

Lack of coordination between coaches and medical teams implies a higher risk of relapse in professional football teams.

CAN GENETICS HELP PREDICT SPORTS TALENT?

Physiological, anthropometric and psychological traits are partially inheritable; that’s why there’s a growing interest to find new techniques which can help predict sports talent through the use of genetics.

DIFFERENCES IN THE MAXIMUM DEMAND SCENARIOS IN FOOTBALL BETWEEN THE FIRST AND THE SECOND HALF

The goal for training is to help players be best prepared for competing.

PLAYER MIGRATION AND THE PERFORMANCE OF ELITE FOOTBALL TEAMS

Globalization –the process driven by the increase in cross-border flows of goods, services, money, people, information and culture1- has dramatically affected western societies and football is not isolated from this phenomenon.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION IN TEAM SPORTS. PACO SEIRUL·LO’S PROPOSAL

Science has changed training in team sports by modifying many routines and preparations. The quantification of everything which takes place in a training session is one of the goals for the staff.

LOCKDOWN AND THE UPRISE IN THE USE OF TECH

The huge adjustments we have made for the coronavirus lockdown mean that some technologies have increased in importance.

CONSEQUENCES OF THE LOCKDOWN FOR PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES

There is no precedent whatsoever for the situation lived in professional sports all over the world as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic. The majority of athletes have had to face uncertainty.

RETURN TO TRAINING AND COMPETITION IN PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL AFTER COVID-19. WHAT DO THE EXPERTS THINK?

The pandemic curve seems to have flattened, and now the health authorities have already started to design a de-escalation plan.

WHICH SPORTS CAN BE PLAYED WITHOUT SPECTATORS?

Across Europe, bans on mass gatherings and public events have been extended into July and August.

SHOULD THE COMPETITION BE RESUMED DURING THE HEALTH EMERGENCY?

In 2007, a review on the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV) was published in the Clinical Microbiology Reviews magazine.

COVID-19: WHAT CLUBS AND ATHLETES SHOULD KNOW

The outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) virus at the end of 2019 has triggered a series of events that will presumably change many of the things we consider as normal in our everyday life.

ANDREAS IVARSSON: “INCLUDING PSYCHOLOGICAL TECHNIQUES IN THE PREVENTION PROGRAMS WOULD REDUCE THE RISK OF INJURIES”

One of the great dangers an athlete can face, if not the greatest, is the risk of getting injured. That’s why its prevention and treatment constitute an essential part of the medical and performance department of the clubs.

AFTER COVID-19, WHAT’S NEXT FOR STARTUPS?

What will be the economic consequences for startups and especially the ones related to sports? How can the innovation and solidarity we are seeing serve as a motivation to move faster?

MOVING MAKES US HAPPIER (PART 2)

The effects of exercising: from an increase in motivation, willpower and emotional control, to the improvement of memory, attention, and learning.

MOVING MAKES US HAPPIER (PART 1)

Moving makes us happier and helps to create a well-being state to all of us.

CURRENT CHALLENGES IN SPORTS FACING COVID-19: MEDIA AND FAN ENGAGEMENT

We will discuss how to make the most from something that at first sight is a weakness, in order to create a future advantage once we leave behind this troubling situation.

CURRENT CHALLENGES IN SPORTS FACING COVID-19: TRAINING, STADIUMS AND BUDGET

The long inactivity due to the forced quarantine has taken a long time to be accepted by all of the economic sectors.

GAMIFICATION OF BARÇA’S FEMALE TEAM TRAINING SESSIONS DURING CONFINEMENT

Physical trainer Lluis Cortés and his physical trainers, Berta Carles and Jacob González have organised training sessions as if they were a competition for as long as this break lasts.

ROUTINES TO KEEP HEALTHY DURING THE CORONAVIRUS QUARANTINE PERIOD

How can we keep healthy during isolation? There are a lot of small activities we can do in order to promote salutogenesis.

HIGH-PERFORMANCE SPORT AND BONE HEALTH. ARE ALL SPORTS THE SAME?

Osteoporosis is a highly common disease among a certain age, which presents low levels of bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) with an increased risk of bone fracture.

COVID-19: HOW FC BARCELONA TRAINS DURING THE ISOLATION PERIOD

The quarantine necessary to flatten the pandemic curve has completely changed the training and competition dynamics of athletes and clubs, which suddenly have had to modify their usual training.

THE INFLUENCE OF COACHES ON PLAYERS’ LEARNING. HOW TO GIVE FEEDBACK DURING A TRAINING SESSION

The profession of a coach is not easy at all. Besides an outstanding knowledge of the gameplay, it is necessary to fully master pedagogical skills to help players learn better and faster.

A recent study suggests that the nordic hamstring exercise could help reduce ischiosural muscle injuries

The ischiosural muscles are one of the most common groups of muscles to get injured, especially in sports which involve changes of direction and speed.

HOW DOES PLAYING AN EXTRA TIME INFLUENCE A FOOTBALL PLAYERS’ PERFORMANCE?

Two studies have analyzed how playing extra time influences players’ physical and technical-tactical performance.

THE BEST STADIUMS IN THE WORLD HAVE IN MIND THE STANDS FOR ITS VIEWERS

In regard to its dimension, the Camp Nou is one of the best stadiums to watch football. That’s what the Fenwick Iribarren architecture firm has considered.

THE INFLUENCE OF A PLAYER BEING SENT OFF ON THE TEAM’S PERFORMANCE

Sending off a player seems to have a psychological effect within the team, which leads them to exert a greater effort during what’s left of the match.

DRONES AS A DATA CAPTURING TECHNOLOGY

Drones have the capacity to fly over the pitch and record training sessions, to obtain an aerial view that is especially useful to evaluate performance.

JUANJO BRAU: “INJURIES AREN’T TREATED, THEY’RE MANAGED”

Juanjo Brau arrived at FC Barcelona in 1997 and now he is the head of the physiotherapy department at the club.

HYPOXIA, KEY IN TENDINOPATHY

Tendinopathy is one of the most common injuries in elite sport.

PERIODIZATION IS AN ESSENTIAL CONCEPT IN SPORTS NUTRITION

Nutritional periodization involves merging it with other physical and mental training strategies.

HOW TO IMPROVE DATA AND DECISION-MAKING USING STATISTICAL ANALYSIS IN FOOTBALL

The tech revolution has modified our behaviour and now it is also revolutionizing sports.

RECOVERY TIME OF THE ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT INJURY IN ELITE FOOTBALL

The anterior cruciate ligament rupture (ACL) is a complicated injury for football players.

HAPPINESS VERSUS WELLNESS IN ELITE SPORT

In team sports, coaches make a lot of decisions and some of them have an immediate impact on the efficiency of the game.

THE COADJUVANT TRAINING METHODOLOGY USED BY FC BARCELONA

Almost 25 years ago Paco Seirul·lo advocated the need for adaptation of high training loads with a parallel preparation to improve physical and technical abilities for elite athlete.

THE 5G REVOLUTION: EXPERIENCING THE STADIUM AT HOME

The 5G revolution, which is the fifth generation of mobile networks, has already started in Camp Nou.

INTERNAL COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE MEDICAL STAFF AND THE COACH IS KEY

During the last two decades, the muscle injury ratio and the players’ attendance to the training sessions and competition matches have remained stable in male professional football.

CREATING REPORTS FOR COACHES FOR BETTER DECISION MAKING

The job of a coach is to make decisions. It is choosing the best players at all times, preparing them well, and being able to manage the best way to play,  to be successful.

MONITORING TECHNOLOGIES FOR SPORTS ANALYSIS

The use of technology in the analysis of sports performance has become a usual and necessary practice among professional teams.

SUSTAINABILITY ADVISORS: TURNING STADIUMS INTO INFLUENCERS

The Mercedes Benz Stadium, in Atlanta, USA, became last year the first sports stadium to get the LEED platinum certification.

EXAMINING THE EFFECT OF SCORING FIRST IN THE OUTCOME OF A FOOTBALL MATCH

In elite football, very few goals are scored. Between 70 and 75% of the matches end up with less than 3 goals.

BARÇA NUTRITION SPORTS CONFERNCE – SPORTS NUTRITION FROM A COMPREHENSIVE POINT OF VIEW

The second edition of the “Barça Nutrition Sports Conference”, took place on the 9th of October, with relevant personalities in the sports nutrition world.

INNOVATION TO BOOST FAN LOYALTY AND ENGAGE WITH THE SOCIETY

There must be a balance between incorporating technology and the fan’s passion; we should never forget that fans are enthusiasts of the sport and its tradition.

2019 BARÇA SPORTS ANALYTICS SUMMIT RESEARCH PAPER FINALISTS AND POSTERS

For the 2019 edition, we chose 8 papers from all the papers received, to present their findings to leading football analytics representatives.

NEW TECH THAT WILL CHANGE THE SPORTS WORLD FOR EVER

During the next three years, the sports world will change more than it has done in the last ten.

A NON-STOP CONTINUOUS TRAINING APPROACH FOR FOOTBALL PLAYERS

Coaches shared ideas on how to improve and enhance football players during their careers.

WINTER BREAK AND INJURIES IN ELITE FOOTBALL

The number of official matches that every season professional footballers play, has increased.

MEMORY AND CONFLICT: HOW THE 1914 CHRISTMAS DAY TRUCE AFFECTS MODERN PEACE-BUILDING INITIATIVES

On a cold, windy day in the middle of the countryside, two groups of men with very different backgrounds and beliefs lined up next to each other.

BARÇA SPORTS PHYSIOTHERAPY CONFERENCE, FROM SCIENCE TO PRACTICE

On the 8th of October, the first edition of the “Barça Sports Physiotherapy Conference” took place, which was part of the “Sport Science week”.

A GLOBAL GROUP OF LEADING SPORTS DATA ANALYSTS GET TOGETHER IN BARCELONA

Football knowledge has been transmitted for years through scouts, reports and videos. Now, a new data analysis era has arrived: with deep, thorough and verified information.

TENDINOPATHY, AN INTEGRATED APPROACH AT THE BARÇA SPORTS MEDICINE CONFERENCE

On October 7, The “Barça Sports Medicine Conference” took place during the “Sports Science Week”.

BLOOD FLOW RESTRICTION TRAINING: FROM SCIENCE TO PRACTICE

Professor Jeremy Loenneke, from the University of Mississippi, is one of the leading researchers in this field, and his work has widely contributed to much of what we currently know about BFR.

TRAINING LOAD, PERFORMANCE AND INJURY RISK IN RUGBY PLAYERS

A rugby player’s ability to perform high-intensity intermittent exercises is associated with a higher training load (TL) which takes place during matches.

THE RISK OF TENDINOPATHY IN ELITE ATHLETES, IS IT IN THE GENES?

In an attempt to reduce injury incidence, new research is being conducted to identify the main risk factors.

PACO SEIRUL·LO’S PROPOSAL FOR TEAM SPORTS TRAINING: STRUCTURED TRAINING, GAME SPACES AND PREFERENTIAL SIMULATION SITUATIONS

In recent years, two training paradigms have revolutionised the way we understand preparation in team sports.

AN APP TO BECOME A FUTURE NBA STAR

HomeCourt, an incredibly well-developed app that the NBA has decided to use it for scouting future professionals.

WHAT WILL FOOTBALL LOOK LIKE IN 2030? THE EVOLUTION OF THE GAME SINCE 1966

We are interested to know what will football look like in the future. We must anticipate this during training to prepare the players as well as possible.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO LEARN TO WORK IN FOOTBALL ANALYTICS?

If you enjoy both the game itself and statistics, nothing could be better than combining the two in a career.

THE FUTURE OF TRACKING AT CAMP NOU

The purpose is straightforward: To know all that’s happening with the players on a football pitch.

THE MODERNISATION OF STADIUMS BEGAN WITH THEIR ROOFS

Stadiums, a perfect example of classic sports architecture, practically disappeared after the fall of the Roman Empire.

WHEN INTERPRETING TRAINING DATA, THINK TWICE BEFORE DOING NOTHING!

“Load Management” has become a popular phrase in high-performance sport.

WHY BUILD A STADIUM THAT CAN BE DISMANTLED LIKE LEGO

For the first time in history, there will be a football stadium that can be dismantled and then repurposed or resold.

THE SCIENCE OF SPACE CREATION

Javier Fernandez and other members of his team are leading a rigorous scientific attempt to understand football.

HALF-TIME STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE PLAYER PERFORMANCE IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE GAME

During this half-time break, players try to rest mentally and physically.

THE INFLUENCE OF AGE ON FOOTBALLERS’ PERFORMANCE

Elite athletes are getting older. We know that players can give their best performance levels for longer now than they could a few decades ago.

THE INFLUENCE OF THE COACH’S LEADERSHIP STYLE ON INJURIES IN ELITE FOOTBALL

Having all players healthy and ready for competition is one of the main training objectives in top-level football.

HOW THE EPIDEMIOLOGY OF INJURIES CAN HELP TO BETTER UNDERSTAND AND MANAGE INJURIES IN PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL

In basketball, as in any other professional sport, the possibility of a shift in a medical paradigm can create a big buzz in the news.

ARE FOOTBALL PLAYERS GETTING OLDER?

Changes in sport are closely linked to changes in society. Life expectancy is increasing and the retirement age has also progressively increased in Spain.

KINEMATIC DEMANDS IN FIELD HOCKEY. HOW DO PLAYERS MOVE DURING A MATCH?

The introduction of the Global Positioning System (GPS) technology into the world of sports enables us to gain specific information about the speeds reached or distances travelled during training and competition.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE H:Q RATIO AND HAMSTRING INJURIES

Injuries are one of the main concerns in the world of sports as they are the primary reason which interrupts an athlete’s training program.

CAN SLEEP TRACKERS HELP IMPROVE OUR SLEEP HYGIENE?

Sleep Trackers have been around for more than a decade, and these apps or devices are aimed to measure the amount and quality of our sleep.

LACK OF SLEEP WEAKENS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM AND DELAYS RECOVERY FOR ATHLETES

Among the many benefits of sleeping well, for athletes there is one very important reason and that’s why they need to sleep more hours: they need to restore the balance to their immune system.

A NEW DISCOVERY OPENS THE DOOR FOR PROBIOTICS TO BOOST ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE

Interest in the human microbiome is on the rise in the scientific community. These microorganisms living in our intestines not only help in terms of digestion, but they also influence the way we eat and the development of every aspect of our metabolism.

HOW STADIUMS ARE HELPING IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE

World-renowned clubs have decided to convert their infrastructure into pioneers of innovation in the field of renewable energies and in reducing their carbon footprint.

FOODS THAT ARE VERY HEALTHY BUT ARE NOT RECOMMENDED DURING EXERCISE

There are all sorts of very healthy foods that are recommended as part of an elite athlete’s diet.

THE USE OF VR/AR/MR TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE IN SPORTS

Virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality are establishing themselves in a society which is becoming ever more accustomed to the use of new technologies for entertainment, consumption or information.

CHALLENGES IN SPORTS MEDICINE DUE TO THE RISE OF INJURIES IN FOOTBALL

Since 2001, hamstring injuries – the most frequent kind of injury – have been increasing by 4% each year.

7 SPORTS MANAGEMENT TRENDS

PRE-SEASON DESIGN: THE INFLUENCE OF INITIAL RESULTS ON A TEAM’S FINAL RANKING

One of the first decisions a club’s coaching staff must take is the design of pre-season training.

PRE-SEASON. GETTING READY TO SHAPE THE PHYSICAL FITNESS OF PLAYERS

The objective of the pre-season is to seek the best individual and collective physical fitness of the team before beginning the competition.

THE BENEFITS OF TAKING A NAP FOR YOUNG ATHLETES

A short nap can reinforce the memory of what was learned just as well as a full night’s sleep.

LOWER EXTREMITY INJURY PREVENTION PROGRAMS IN TEAM SPORTS

Designing injury prevention programs is a top priority for coaching staff in the pursuit to reduce the incidence of injuries.

OUR BRAIN HINDERS SLEEP THE FIRST NIGHT AWAY FROM HOME, BUT WE CAN STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING

Not feeling rested after your first night away from home is normal and has traditionally been associated to psychological factors or fatigue from having travelled the day before.

MENTAL FATIGUE IN ELITE FOOTBALL: THE IMPORTANCE OF HOLIDAYS

Players simply train and compete a lot and we know that there is a high risk of injury and of physical fatigue when players train and compete too much.

PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL PLAYERS AND HOLIDAYS, PREPARING FOR THE COMING SEASON

The competitive season in team sports is often divided into 3 phases with very different objectives: the pre-season (lasting 4-6 weeks), the competitive season (9-10 months) and the off-season or holiday period (4-6 weeks).

THE ADVANTAGE OF PLAYING AT HOME

The advantage of playing at home in football is a widely studied and recognised phenomenon.

CONTRARY TO WHAT WAS EXPECTED, THE LENGTH OF THE FREE TENDON DOES NOT INFLUENCE THE BICEPS FEMORIS RECOVERY

The biceps femoris is one of the muscles that make up the hamstrings, which is one of the most injured muscle groups in sports such as football.

WHAT ROLE DO ANTIOXIDANTS PLAY FOR ELITE ATHLETES?

Right after we are born, our bodies begin to oxidise. This is a natural process that results from our exposure to various elements such as pollution, an excess of solar radiation, stress and even physical exercise.

MEDICAL CHALLENGES IN WOMEN’S FOOTBALL

The relationship between health and athletic performance go hand in hand, and elite sports couldn’t be understood without the direct supervision of specialized doctors.

IRREGULAR SLEEP: THE ENEMY OF PERFORMANCE IN TEENAGERS

There is an increasing tendency among teenagers all over the world to sleep fewer hours during the week and to make up for it over the weekend.

SMALL-SIDED GAMES IN FOOTBALL. ARE ADAPTATIONS THE SAME FOR PROFESSIONAL PLAYERS AND AMATEURS?

Small-sided games (SSG) are very common training tasks for any team.

THE USE OF WELLNESS QUESTIONNAIRES IN FOOTBALL

Training load (TL) management is a key component for optimising performance. Understanding TL will allow us to evaluate fatigue and to anticipate overload and overtraining in order to minimise injury risk.

RECOVERY AFTER SPORTS ACTIVITY AND THE FOUR RS OF NUTRITION

Nutrition plays a major role and has a great impact on all aspects of our lives. It is even more important when we are talking about recovery post-exercise.

APPLYING THE PRINCIPLES OF JOHAN CRUYFF TO DATA SCIENCE

With such an ambitious goal, the Barça Innovation Hub has presented its research at this year’s world-renowned MIT Sloan Sports Analytics international conference.

THE ROLE OF NUTRITION IN ELITE SPORTS

Nutrition should help optimise everyone’s health, but for athletes also optimises performance and it is a key component for reaching one’s maximum physical development.

THE FIRST STADIUM TO TURN FOOTBALL INTO ELECTRICITY

It is almost equally important as education, that children have spaces in the neighbourhood where they can spend their leisure time without falling into delinquency.

EVALUATION OF THE INTERNAL LOAD IN FOOTBALL: FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE

The development of elite sports has meant that players are constantly exposed to higher training loads, busier competition schedules and shorter rest periods.

ISOMETRIC STRENGTH OF THE POSTERIOR CHAIN: ITS IMPORTANCE IN FOOTBALL AND HOW TO MEASURE IT

In football, hamstring injuries have been shown to account for up to 37% of muscle injuries.

COLD THERAPY TO IMPROVE POST-EXERCISE RECOVERY. IS THIS METHOD TRULY EFFECTIVE?

Facilitating proper recovery after training sessions is essential to improve the athlete’s performance.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TRAINING AND COMPETING IN HEAT

When athletes train or compete in a hot environment, their body temperature increases and a series of mechanisms for eliminating heat are triggered.

THE PLANTARIS TENDON, A NEW PLAYER FOR RESISTANT ACHILLES TENDINOPATHIES

Chronic Achilles tendinopathy is one of the most common tendon disorders, both for athletes and for people who are not necessarily involved in sports.

MANAGING FAMILIAL HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA IN ELITE ATHLETES

FC Barcelona’s first team doctors Mindaugas Gudelis and Ricard Pruna reviewed a series of cases and carried out a brief clinical analysis of familial hypercholesterolemia in high-performance athletes in an article for the scientific journal Apunts Medicina de L’Esport.

GETTING INTO THE GAME: EVIDENCE THAT TEAM SPORTS HELP IN CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

Regardless of country or race, children’s eyes light up when they see a player from their team run out onto the pitch. That emotion is so special because in their heart they identify with the player, and they may even aspire to be like them someday, whether in sports or in life.

A PIONEERING RESEARCH ON SHOULDER MUSCLE ACTIVATION IN HANDBALL PLAYERS

Handball is one of the sports that are encompassed by the term overhead, a concept that includes sports based on a movement in which the arm is brought above the head.

THE FATMAX STRESS TEST AND THE ATHLETE’S TYPE OF ENERGY METABOLISM

An article published in the scientific journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise has shown that a FATMAX stress test on professional footballers not only provides cardiovascular fitness levels, but also helps to understand the players’ main energy metabolism.

CHANGING THE LIVES OF REFUGEE CHILDREN THROUGH SPORTS

It has been estimated that there are currently more than 65 million displaced people fleeing from wars, conflict and persecution. Half of them are minors, the most vulnerable population.

HOW CAN YOU TRAIN YOUR GUT FOR EXERCISE?

Up until a few years ago, it was considered normal for sportspeople to have digestive problems while exercising.

NORDIC HAM CURLS DO NOT IMPROVE SPRINTING PERFORMANCE

The hamstring muscle is very important in sports such as football. Not only because this muscle is key to sprinting, but also because hamstring muscle injuries are the most frequent kind of injuries.

MAGNETIC RESONANCE AND MUSCLE INJURIES: AN ANALYSIS OF THE CLASSIFICATIONS AVAILABLE

Muscle injuries make up more than 30% of sports injuries. It occurs that a professional football team can expect to suffer an average of 15 incidents related to muscle injuries per season

FOOTBALL IS FOR FOOTBALLERS

FC Barcelona recently held a conference entitled “Barça: Female and Diverse” to coincide with the International Women’s Day, organized at the Camp Nou facilities.

MAXIMUM DEMAND SCENARIOS IN POSITIONAL PLAY: ARE THEY EQUALLY REPLICATED ACROSS ALL POSITIONS?

Players’ conditional response during competition, for example, distance covered at a run, has traditionally been described using the average value covered during a half or full game.

THE INFLUENCE OF THE PERCEIVED EXERTION RATING ON FOOTBALL TRAINING AND COMPETITION.

Monitoring training load is one of the fundamental tools for optimising the performance of both elite athletes in general and football players in particular.

HOW DO THE NUMEROUS CONSTRAINTS AFFECTING ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE RELATE TO ONE ANOTHER?

We know that athletic performance is a complex phenomenon that depends on numerous constraints, but do we know how these constraints relate to and interact with each other?

A SIMPLE AND INNOVATIVE INDICATOR FOR WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL AND WHEELCHAIR RUGBY TRAINING

Despite the growing interest in Paralympic sports, research into performance in elite wheelchair sports has seen very little development.

ENTROPY, A NEW MEASUREMENT IN STRENGTH TRAINING

The ability to sprint is essential in the majority of team sports, including rugby, soccer, and basketball. But this ability is not developed in stable and controlled conditions: players are constantly subjected to variable demands, whether receiving, carrying, passing, hitting, or throwing the ball.

ARE SMALL-SIDED GAMES THE SOLUTION TO ALL OUR PROBLEMS?

One of today’s most attention-grabbing topics among sports researchers, coaches and managers have to do with the study of maximal demand scenarios, also known as “worst case scenarios”.

POSITION SPECIFIC AND POSITIONAL PLAY TRAINING IN ELITE FOOTBALL: CONTEXT MATTERS

Those who have watched elite football across the last decade, realise that the game is more demanding than ever. This places more emphasis on training methods to prepare players for the rigors of the game.

FOUR EFFECTIVE TESTS TO PREVENT SUDDEN DEATH IN TEENAGE ATHLETES

Two in every one hundred thousand young athletes die every year from what is known as sudden cardiac death. It is a small figure, but every single case is devastating: not only for their families and loved ones, but also for society, which will be in shock at such an unexpected death.

VALIDATING THE DIFFERENT TRACKING SYSTEMS IN FOOTBALL

In November 2018, the Football Technology Innovation department at FIFA and Victoria University, conducted a research study in collaboration with the Barça Innovation Hub at the Mini Estadi, to explore the validity of the Electronic Performance Tracking Systems (EPTS) of 16 different companies.

PLAYER ORIENTATION, A KEY ASPECT OF PREDICTIVE MODELS IN FOOTBALL

In the OptaPro Forum this week, Carlos Rodríguez will be presenting a study currently being carried out by the club on the body orientation of players in different game situations. We sat down for a chat with him so that he could give us a brief explanation of the project.

WHICH VARIABLES DO WE TRAINERS LOOK AT TO HELP US MAKE DECISIONS?

Of all the variables provided by the systems that monitor and record our players’ activity, what is the most relevant information? This is a question that all coaches will probably face when they begin managing the large volumes of data generated in every training session.

AGAINST PSEUDOSCIENCE IN SPORTS

It would be completely inconceivable for education or professional practice in medicine, biology, or engineering not to be based on scientific evidence. However, although it is paradoxical, it is very common to find unscientific content in the science of sport and physical activity.

FC BARCELONA: HOW OUR NEW RESEARCH HELPED UNLOCK THE ‘BARÇA WAY’

For the first time, our new research may provide some insight into the training methodology and, potentially, the secrets of the club’s success. These “secrets” could be closely associated with the theories put forward by coach Paco Seirul·lo and how they link with cutting edge sports science.

APPLYING FERRAN ADRIÀ’S CREATIVE AUDIT TO SPORTS

Is it possible to innovate or come up with new ideas in the sports industry using the chef’s technique? How can adapt these insights to our process? What have we learned?

NEW DATA ON PHYSICAL DEMANDS IN BASKETBALL PLAYERS

A basketball player performs approximately one thousand actions on average during a game, and at least one out of every ten requires high intensity. The detailed analysis of these physical demands allows for optimized training, improved performance and decreased injury risk.

SPORTS NUTRITION FOR FOOTBALL

Futbol Club Barcelona (FCB) is a centre of sporting excellence where it is recognized that appropriate nutrition is essential to health and performance of players. The Gatorade Sports Science Institute’s (GSSI’s) mission is to help athletes improve their health and performance through innovation, research, and education in hydration and nutrition science.

INFLUENCE OF ANALYTICS ON SCOUTING FOR EACH TEAM PROJECT PHASE IN THE NBA AND THEIR APPLICATION TO CHAMPION LEAGUE TEAMS

MUSCLE INJURY GUIDE – PREVENTING AND TREATING MUSCLE INJURIES IN FOOTBALL

There are many physical and mental health benefits to training and playing football, however, there is also, unfortunately, one key adverse effect; an increased risk of injury, with muscle injuries being one of the most common injuries we see in elite football.

HAMSTRING AND OTHER MUSCLE INJURIES IN CHILDREN AND YOUNG ATHLETES

This is a groundbreaking study that addresses hamstring injuries in children and youth. The results indicate that the risk is lower than it is in adults, though no less significant, and that it increases progressively with age.

EMPOWERING COACHES WITH NEW INTERACTIVE TECHNOLOGIES

We are pleased to announce our venture with Coplays. A Finnish app for coaches, allowing them to easily create animated drills, plays and drawings which are convenient to their needs.

Soccer from First Principles

The goal of this post is to outline a series of principles that are considered to be crucial to understand the development of FC Barcelona’s playing style.

SURGERY FOR CENTRAL HAMSTRING TENDON INJURIES: AN INTERNAL STUDY

Two years ago, the FC Barcelona medical team decided to operate on the athletes with this type of injury. What were the results?

AN OBJECTIVE CLASSIFICATION OF MUSCLE INJURIES

An objective and appropriate classification would improve the accuracy of prognosis, allow treatment to be adjusted and reduce the risk of re-injury.

STUDY OF HIGH INTENSITY ACCELERATIONS AND DECELERATIONS IN SOCCER

A new dimension of analysis suggests that maximum accelerations occur with a frequency 8x greater than sprint actions.

PRE-SEASON TRAINING LOAD AND INJURY RISK

The pre-season or preparatory phase of the season is a time when major “errors” in training load management are often committed.

The Athlete’s Physical: an Essential Examination

A health check must detect situations which, despite not showing obvious symptoms, may endanger athletes subject to the highest demands.

Spaces in Soccer from a Quantitative Perspective

In the words of Johan Cruyff, “Players, in reality, have the ball for 3 minutes, on average. So, the most important thing is: what do you do during those 87 minutes when you do not have the ball? That is what determines whether you’re a good player or not.” 

Diagnostic Imaging in Sports Medicine: Present and Future

Muscle injuries account for more than 30% of all injuries in sports like soccer. Their significance is therefore enormous in terms of training sessions and lost game time.

Barça Innovation Hub: A Great Sports Laboratory for the Future of Sport

One of the fundamental principles of the Barça Innovation Hub is the conviction that, in scientific research and innovation projects, collaboration between different types of entities generates more efficient and robust results which are suitable for the needs of end users.