The purpose of this study was to use a multivariate approach to investigate variations in home advantage between different team sports and between different countries both for men’s and women’s competition. The data were based on the domestic premier leagues of 15 sports in 65 countries worldwide, over a 5-year period from 2011 to 2015 with a total of 1952 league tables qualifying for inclusion. After controlling for differences in competitive balance between the leagues, a general linear model found significant differences between sports, between countries and between sexes. Quantifying home advantage as the proportion of total points won by the home team in a league, basketball and handball were highest for both men and women. For men, Bosnia-Herzegovina had by far the greatest advantage with other Balkan nations well above average. Rugby union in France was the domestic league in which playing at home provided the most advantage. The results suggested that the pace of a sport and the dimensions of the playing area might both be having an effect on home advantage.

The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review of the scientific literature on handball match analysis and to identify potential research areas for future work. Data were collected from Web of Science, MEDLINE, SPORTDiscus, Scopus, EBSCO, and ProQuest databases. The initial search found 148 journal articles. Only the papers focused on handball match analysis regarding tactical and technical aspects were considered, for a final list of 25 publications. The complexity approach under which each considered publication was conducted was taken into account (i.e., static vs. dynamic). Therein, authors, main analysis, number of performance indicators under study, considered situational variables, statistics and/or analysis methods, type of competition, number of matches, and sex of participants were distinguished for classification purposes. Research on handball match analysis has evolved over the years, mainly due to the great technological advances. Studies conducted under the classical static complexity approach are the most extended. Studies performed under the relatively new dynamic complexity approach are growing. The present review identified the following main guidelines for future work on handball match analysis: conducting more studies focused on the defensive profile; analyzing handball national leagues and international club competitions; performing more studies in female handball; including game situational variables into the analysis (i.e., game type, match status, game location, quality of opposition, game period); incorporating critical events of the game into the analysis (e.g., team timeouts, exclusions); and, conducting further research from the promising dynamic complexity perspective.

This study examined the association and predictive ability of several markers of internal workload on risk of injury in high‐performance junior tennis players. Fifteen young, high‐level tennis players (9 males, 6 females; age: 17.2 ± 1.1 years; height: 178.5 ± 8.7 cm; mass: 68.1 ± 4.8 kg) participated in this investigation. Data on injury epidemiology and internal workload during training were obtained for one competitive season. The session‐rating of perceived exertion (s‐RPE) was used to calculate internal workload markers in absolute (acute workload and chronic workload for 2‐weeks, 3‐weeks and 4‐weeks) and relative terms (acute:chronic workload ratios [ACWR] for 2‐weeks, 3‐weeks and 4‐weeks). Associations and diagnostic power for predicting tennis injuries were examined through generalised estimating equations and receiver operating characteristics analyses. During the season, a total of 40 injuries were recorded, corresponding to 3.5 injuries per 1000 h of tennis practice. The acute workload was highly associated with injury incidence (P=0.04), as injury risk increased by 1.62 times (95% CI: 1.01–2.62) for every increase of 1858.7 arbitrary units (AU) of the workload during the most recent training week. However, acute workload was a poor predictor of injury, and associations between injury and internal workload markers were weak (all P>0.05). These findings demonstrate an association between high values of acute workload and the risk of injury in high‐level tennis players. However, a high acute workload is only one of the many factors associated with injury, and by itself, has low predictive ability for injury.

The purpose of this study was to quantify the home advantage in both men’s and women’s First and Second Division water polo leagues, to compare the results obtained according to sex of participants and the level of competition, and to test for possible differences in home advantage when considering the interaction between these two factors. The sample comprised four seasons from 2007-2008 to 2010-2011 for a total of 1942 games analyzed. The results showed the existence of home advantage in both men’s and women’s First and Second Divisions. After controlling for the competitive balance of each league in each season, there was a significant difference between men’s and women’s leagues, with higher home advantage for men’s leagues (58.60% compared with 53.70% for women’s leagues). There was also a significant difference between the levels of competition, with greater home advantage for the Second Division (57.95% compared with 54.35% for First Division). No significant differences in home advantage were found when considering the interaction between sex of participants and the level of competition. The results in relation to sex of participants and the level of competition are consistent with previous studies in other sports such as football or handball.

To enhance athletic performance and reduce the risk of injury, load quantification has allowed for a better understanding of the individual characteristics of the physical demands on soccer players during training or competition. In this regard, it appears crucial to summarize scientific evidence to provide useful information and future directions related to the speed and acceleration profiles of male soccer players. This review aims to evaluate the findings reflected in the available literature on both profiles in football, synthesizing and discussing data from scientific articles, while providing insights into quantification methods, employed thresholds, tracking systems, terminology, playing position, and microcycle day. Therefore, it is hoped that this narrative review can support objective decision-making in practice for coaches, sports scientists, and medical teams regarding individualized load management and the appropriate selection of metrics, to explore current trends in soccer player profiles.