Talent Development Environments in Football: Comparing the Top-Five and Bottom-Five-Ranked Football Academies in Norway

Place Matters: A Study on the Influence of Birthplace and the Place of Development on Soccer Academy Players' Careers

The effect of birthplace (the place where a player is born and grows up) is one of the key variables associated with soccer player development and achievement. However, recent studies have questioned the influence of contextual variables on selection and promotion processes related to birthplace. The main purposes of this study were: (1) establish whether there is a difference between the birthplace and sporting growth according to the stages of entry into the academy, (2) to evaluate the influence of geographical and contextual variables on sporting development, and (3) assess the chances of making a professional team debut. Applied logistic regression was used in order to analyse the birthplace and growth of 1411 male soccer players, of which 40.1% are incorporated in the U-12 category from a Spanish First division club, and the results showed a statistically significant association between a change from one's birthplace to the place of sporting growth and later success (79%). Key contextual variables such as number of inhabitants, population density, proximity to sports facilities, average household income and presence of sports clubs have been considered. The analysis of the contextual variables revealed that there was a positive relationship between certain variables, like a higher population, and being selected for the academy (p < 0.01; r = 0.28). Finally, the findings showed that players who experienced a geographical transition were 38% more likely to make a professional debut. The importance of considering the place of sporting growth when analysing the "birthplace effect" has therefore been demonstrated.

Relative age effects and the youth-to-senior transition in Italian soccer: the underdog hypothesis versus knock-on effects of relative age

Relative Age Effects (RAEs) appear largely throughout youth soccer. However, little is known about how RAEs at youth levels can impact transition at senior levels. Accordingly, this study aimed to: (a) provide further test of RAEs by exploring the birth quarter (BQ) distribution of 2,030 Italian players born from 1975 to 2001 who have played in any of the Youth National Italian Soccer Teams; and (b) investigate how RAEs influence future career outcomes, by exploring the BQ distribution of players who completed the transition from youth squads to the Senior National Team (n = 182).  Chi-square statistics revealed significantly skewed BQ distributions for all Youth squads (P values <0.0001), and for the cohort of players who completed the transition (P = 0.003). In contrast, results from the Odds Ratios highlighted how BQ4s were more likely to transition from youth-to-senior compared to BQ1s. Results showed BQ1s remained overrepresented at senior level due to a residual bias effect. Whereas BQ4s who were able to overcome selection processes at youth levels recorded the highest likelihood of competing at senior levels. Involving players' career trajectories in RAEs studies is needed to understand how RAEs impacts career outcomes of early selected players.

A mixed methods exploration of the parent perspective of talent development environments across a national multi-sport landscape

Parents are known to be important influencers in the talent development process but are often overlooked. Understanding the parent perspective may help National Governing Bodies and coaches improve their support for young talented athletes. This study aims to understand the parent perspective of the talent development experience across a national multi-sport landscape using mixed methods. Four hundred and eighty-five parents of pathway athletes completed the talent development environment questionnaire for parents (TDEQ-P), which included the opportunity for parents to respond in an open fashion. The results revealed several key relative strengths and weaknesses of the talent development environment. Areas identified for improvement included 1) Communication related to pathway understanding, planning, guidance, and feedback, 2) Individualised training, goal setting, and feedback, 3) Facilities, 4) Access to a specialist support network, in particular psychology support, 5) Engagement between coaches and, 6) Dual career management and engagement with educational institutions. The results also revealed evidence of context specific needs between performance level, sport type, and age group. The TDEQ-P may be an efficient and effective way coaches can access important feedback, improve communication, and build relationships with parents in sport.

Are Late-Born Young Soccer Players Less Mature Than Their Early-Born Peers, Although No Differences in Physical and Technical Performance Are Evident?

The aim of the study was to compare the status of somatic maturity, anthropometry, strength, speed, and soccer-specific technical skills of players from leading youth soccer academies born in different quarters of the same calendar year. A total of 678 young male soccer players from eight leading Russian soccer academies took part in the study. The following anthropometric measures and physical characteristics were measured: height, weight, body mass index, countermovement jumps (CMJ), 5, 10, and 20 m sprints, speed dribbling, foot and body ball juggling, and short and long pass accuracy. The determination of somatic maturity as a percentage of projected adult height was collected. All subject dates of birth were divided into four quartiles according to the month of birth. The analysis of all data obtained was conducted both within the total sample and by quartiles of birth, according to the age group categories of 12-13 years, 14-15 years, and 16-17 years and the degree of somatic maturity. There was a widespread relative age effect, with 43.5% of early-born players and only 9.6% of late-born players representing the sample. Early-born players were more mature than late-born players (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001) but had no statistically significant differences in strength, speed, or soccer-specific skills.

German version of the Talent Development Environment Questionnaire (TDEQ-5)

The quality of the talent development environment and how it supports youth athletes has been identified as one major factor of success. Nonetheless, in psychological talent assessment there is a lack of standardized instruments addressing environmental aspects. One well-known questionnaire is the Talent Development Environment Questionnaire (TDEQ; Martindale et al., 2010). Until recently, the TDEQ had been translated into several languages, but not into German. Within this study, the five-factor, 25-item TDEQ‑5 (Li, Wang, Pyun, & Martindale, 2015) was systematically forward and backward translated and administered to 276 German youth athletes from different sports, aged between 13 and 21 years (mean [M] = 16.01; standard deviation [SD] = 2.1). In addition, 63 of these athletes completed both the German and English TDEQ‑5 to test for quality of translation. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the five-factor structure was acceptable according to the chi-square test to degrees of freedom ratio (1.9), root mean square error of approximation (0.058), and standardized root mean square (0.061). The comparative fit index (CFI) of 0.88 and the Tucker-Lewis Index of 0.86 was slightly below the 0.90 cut-off value. The reliabilities of the TDEQ‑5 factors were considered moderate to satisfactory (α = 0.62 to 0.75). In conclusion, the German TDEQ‑5 appears to be an applicable tool for use in research and applied settings but needs further analysis. In particular, we encourage future research to test the construct validity and ecological validity of the German TDEQ‑5 and suggest practitioners to utilize the tool to test and drive applied interventions within talent development environments.

Talent development environments in elite Taekwondo population: a study within an Italian context

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to analyze the quality perception of the main talent development environments within the elite taekwondo population, through the Talent Development Environment Questionnaire (TDEQ-5).

METHODS

The TDEQ-5 was given to 107 top level athletes from the Italian National Team and from 12 domestic clubs. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was carried out and the descriptive statistics were measured for all the individual item scores; for each factor the independent t-Tests were carried out to identify differences in scores between the National and the Club environments.

RESULTS

The EFA revealed four principal components (56.68%). These four factors reported good reliability values (α = from 0.63 to 0.93) and significant correlations. The development environments were positively perceived by the athletes, with Factor 1 being the highest performing component and Factor 2 the weakest. Factor 1 was identified as the strength of the Club environment, while Factor 2 as the area of improvement for the National environment. The scale values of Factors 1, 2 and 3 were significantly higher (p < 0.01) in the Club environment. The item-by-item analysis revealed the presence of three strengths and six areas of improvement in the national environment, eleven strengths and no areas of improvement in the Club environment.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study highlights the strengths and weaknesses of the different development environments surveyed and may allow to plan targeted interventions to increase the perception of quality of the talent development environments, thus allowing the stakeholders to optimize their work.