Andrew Lee

I wrote about how football clubs can, and should, use data to analyse and assess the style of play that managers have implemented at clubs during their career so far, as part of the hiring process… You can read it on the StatsBomb blog here 👇 https://lnkd.in/dye2GKn4

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The purpose of this paper is to discuss some of the ethical implications and problems in elite sport as it gets closer to the human performance limit. Modern elite sport must be viewed on the background of the idea of systematic progress. The Olympic motto, 'citius, altius, fortius'-faster, higher, stronger-gives a precise concentration of this idea. Modern sport is also influenced by the liberal idea of a free market where actors can perform, compete and be rewarded according to performance. However, one may ask why and how athletes are willing to risk their health and even their life on the free market of sport when they do the extreme: push limits, break records, set new standards, develop new events. This paper discusses what may be the result as sport moves toward the limits of human performance. The ethical focus on the development of the elite sport should not be restricted to the individual athlete, but should also include the various systems that make up elite sport. Other actors, like coaches, leaders, sponsors, medical personnel, service people, etc., are taking part in the same development ⚠️

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Great overview in this BBC article around English Top tier Football club revenue and debt , the article caught my eye this evening as it provides a nice visual overview around some key cost and revenue analysis related to top tier football clubs , a very good example at how impactful and easy to relate visuals can narrate your data and insights overview effectively #dataanalysis #storytelling

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Here's an introductory article into a series I'm writing which focuses on the market dynamics of IPL auctions, player valuations, constructing a squad from scratch and much more...

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Time for the #TFAArchives! Each day, Fintan O'Reilly dips into the TFA archives of 10,000+ articles and pulls out a few that are relevant based on current events and Chris Beaumont tries to remember to post them. Jadon Sancho played a starring role as Borussia Dortmund defeated PSG 1-0 at home in their UEFA Champions League semi-final first leg. We previewed what the Manchester United outcast would bring to the current BVB setup in January: https://lnkd.in/g-nvRw9C Meanwhile, many viewers left Tuesday’s 2-2 draw between FC Bayern and Real Madrid talking about Los Blancos’ ex-Bayern star Toni Kroos and his impactful playmaking display; we detailed what makes him such a special player: https://lnkd.in/enBY68mS Ipswich Town just need a point against Huddersfield Town on the final day of the EFL Championship season to secure promotion back to the top-flight for the first time since 2001/02 for The Tractor Boys! Learn about coach Kieran McKenna’s tactics: https://lnkd.in/g3qEQcjK Thiago Silva is set to depart Chelsea, with Fluminense named as potential suitors. The Brazilian centre-back featured in our analysis on the art of the disguised pass, with Silva providing some lessons on how to use this technique in deep areas: https://lnkd.in/gjtHrpb9 And that is it for today - we will be back in the morning with the latest analysis. #football #analysis #scouting #tactics #soccer #tactical #recruitment #data #analytics #viz

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❗️NEW VIDEO❗️ My latest video with Sarah Rudd is now available to watch in full! Sarah has been a prominent member of the football analytics community for many years now after moving over from a role at Microsoft. In this conversation we speak about: - Applying her skills to football - Working at Arsenal for almost a decade - How analytics differ in various sports - Networking, conferences and looking ahead - Plus much more It was a real pleasure to host Sarah on the podcast and so I hope you enjoy the video 👍🏼 Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/gHMmjGim #footballanalytics #sportsanalytics #sportsanalysis #sportsdata #workinsport

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1. GAME STATE READING BETWEEN THE LINES 2. PLAYER CONNECTIONS MAPPING ON-FIELD CHEMISTRY 3. PHASES THE ESSENCE OF BALL PROGRESSION 4. PPDA DECODING DEFENSIVE ACTIONS 5. CHANCES OPTIMIZING CHANCE ANALYSIS and much more :-)

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In new research for Analytics FC, Casey Evans investigates how defining and analysing the difference between internal and external return on investment can lead to valuable insights about how to measure and value football academies https://lnkd.in/eNJHDHas

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I really enjoyed reading this article by Sam Smith of the Daily Express on the use of advanced analytics by several high profile football players in negotiating their contract renewal and/or considering their next move. https://lnkd.in/eaq5aTYV ⚽ Sam's article is based on an interview he recently carried out with me and Alex Stewart from our associates as Analytics FC. It looks in particular at how analytics from TransferLab, the player data scouting SaaS platform developed by LCP in partnership with Analytics FC, have been used by both male and female players. These include Ben White, Kevin de Bruyne, Hector Bellerin, and Alex Greenwood of the Lionesses, as well as many others. ⚽ While TransferLab's primary role is to support clubs in identifying player prospects for potential recruitment, and understanding their skill-sets, it's been interesting and rewarding to see its parallel development in recent years in helping players understand their own value when negotiating their contracts with clubs. #footballanalytics #transferlab #analyticsfc TransferLab uses event data from over 100 men’s and 30 women's leagues from around the world covering around 100,000 male and 15,000 female players. It uses advanced analytics to assess each player’s past performance and help predict their future performance. The TransferLab Player Privacy Policy can be accessed here: https://lnkd.in/e9z9huC2

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New Premier League financial rules are on their way which appear to be linked to the concept of “anchoring” spending to a multiple of the bottom club’s PL broadcasting revenue. Is this to promote financial sustainability or to prevent one particularly dominant team or a group of teams from dominating the league and threatening the competive balance of the league? If “smaller” clubs can increase their player related spend then will this not lead to increased losses and more financial issues? What do you think of the initial proposals? Comment below 👇👇👇 #footballfinance #premierleague #psr #footballfinanceprofessionals https://lnkd.in/dcgxP3qr

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Any football club is always in two competitions. The competition to win trophies (or to climb up the football pyramid) and to create a financially stable organisation (less popular and often ignored by fans). As stated by Kieran Maguire, Brentford Football Club was the only profitable club since the inception of the premier league but with a general notion that clubs need to spend huge amounts of money for success, did this financial success come at the cost of their football performance? Let's explore! Brentford Football Club were taken over by their current owner Matthew Benham in 2012-13 with the club in the 3rd tier at the time (League One) and having last played in the 1st division 20 years ago. At the time, Matthew was also the founder of Smartodds, a company that focused on providing suggestions to professional gamblers and using statistical research and sports modelling. After taking over, Matthew brought his expertise in data analysis to Brentford and adopted a data-driven approach to player recruitment and for identifying undervalued assets in the industry. In Matthew's first season, Brentford improved on their league standing to 3rd from 9th in the previous season and achieved promotion to Championship in the following season. Brentford stayed in the championship for another 7 years with an average league position of 7 (finishing 3rd twice with a worst finish of 11) before finally winning promotion to the English Premier League in 2021-22 In their 1st season back in the premier league after 30 years, Brentford overcame the relegation battle to finish a respectable 13th. The following season, they finished 9th showing a continuous improvement since adopting a more data-driven approach. Where most clubs find it difficult to stay in the premier league after winning promotion, Brentford has managed to replace its star performers (Watkins, Benrahma, Konsa, Raya, Maupay, etc.) while gradually climbing the football pyramid. Considering they spent the majority of the current season without their star striker Ivan Toney, their current position of 15th isn't bad and with 5 more games to go, they would be hoping to climb as high as possible. Brentford is an excellent example of how clubs can transform themselves into a profitable yet competitive football club. With other clubs also adopting similar data-driven methods, one can expect more clubs to turn a profit in the future. #SmartScoutAI #DataDrivenRecruiting #ClubTransformations #ProfitableClubs #SustainableClubs

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My scouting site has just been updated with data from Europe's top leagues. You can now search player profiles from: 🇪🇸 La Liga 🇩🇪 Bundesliga 🇫🇷 Ligue 1 🇮🇹 Serie A 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 The Premier League & The Championship And this is just the beginning! 🌟 More leagues to be added over the coming week along with some slick new features and analysis tools 🔎 The site is completely free to use, so please go and explore! I value your feedback - drop a comment if you have any suggestions for improvements. 🙌 #SportsAnalytics

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NEW: Marginal Gains In The Lower Levels Of Football The landscape of football is changing. Every year we're seeing greater adoption of data and analytics outside of the elite, with many success stories An article on how things have changed 🔽 https://lnkd.in/ePEgcp3q

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A salary cap does it make sense? Premier League v Bundesliga: The Premier League are looking at introducing a salary cap. This appears to make sense when you see that having to compete on player’s wages has long pushed a considerable number of clubs in England well into the red. The wages in the Premier are the highest among the top five leagues. Planet Football shows the wages by club range from £205m per season (Manchester United) to £24m (Luton Town): https://lnkd.in/d3VCnf-x The Premier League is partly so popular because of its ‘NBA’ of football quality, a league in which more of the very best players in the world are seen week by week than any other. That is until the advent of the Saudi league perhaps? No, but seriously… The price the clubs in England play to outcompete the rest of the big leagues, and each other can be ruinous. As compiled by Sportbrief the debt levels of Premier League clubs currently range from £1.8bn (Chelsea) to £58m (Everton), see: https://lnkd.in/dgsvhZkt As you might expect I now contrast this with the Bundesliga… The wage bills in the German top tier from €258m (Bayern) to €10m (Heidenheim) in 23/24 (source FootyStats), see: https://lnkd.in/dJZM9uzv In 22/23 the debt levels of Bundesliga clubs ranged from: -€70m (Borussia Dortmund to -€0.4m Augsburg, see: https://lnkd.in/dJ8Q_GPG Looking at this Statista data from 2021 wages in the Premier on average make up 71% but can make up as much as 98% of clubs revenue (Fulham) to 57% (Tottenham): https://lnkd.in/dtfkk9eG Bayern’s revenue was €852m in 22/23. their wage bill €416m, Dortmund’s €418m, their wage bill €263m, the contrast with the wage bill is favourable. According to kicker among the top 20 clubs in Europe with the highest wages only Bayern, BVB and RB Leipzig feature: https://lnkd.in/dYPwud_Y Bayern pay more wages than any Premier side, except Manchester City and Liverpool, and are debt-free. BVB pay the 13th highest wages in Europe and have minimal debt. Bundesliga ticket prices are affordable, and clubs are, bar 3, majority member-owned? How do they do that? Another key issue which was raised by Gianni Infantino this week; According to DIE ZEIT player advisers payments amounted to €200m in 2022/23 in the German league. In the Premier in contrast it was £409m (BBC). In spite of the £6.7bn (v €4.4bn@Bundesliga) record media deal, in the Premier League debts at clubs are largely unsustainable. The need to outgun every league is evidently mostly causing the issue. Is it working? This season only Aston Villa are in the last 4 of European competitions. Would a wage cap make sense in the English game? 64 clubs in the top 4 tiers, including Palace, Leeds, Southampton, Luton have gone into administration since 1993, see: https://lnkd.in/eau3g89T But would a wage cap make clubs in England less competitive in Europe? The BBC’s Simon Stone looks further: https://lnkd.in/da6V3xfW For more writing visit: benmcfadyean.net

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During my time at Ampere Analysis, I wrote an article about betting companies sponsoring football, and why this is important for clubs. Please do have a read! https://lnkd.in/eAbcE349

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𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑺𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒔𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕: 𝑨 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑱𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒚 🎓 🚀 𝘌𝘹𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘚𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘐𝘎 𝘈𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘺! This comprehensive course covered a wide range of topics and has significantly enhanced my understanding of the sports betting industry. 📚 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 - Fixed, Parlays, Multi-bets, Live Bets Management - Risk Factoring & Specials Events Betting - Odds Movements & Risk Management - Odds Compiling & applying Overrounds - Customer Profiling & their Risk Assessment. - Bonuses, Promotions & Free Bets Strategies Each module provided practical knowledge and real-world applications, deepening my understanding of online sportsbook management. This training has equipped me with the skills and insights necessary to navigate the dynamic landscape of sports betting. It’s been a transformative experience that has greatly contributed to my professional development. At SPORT.TRADE, we are leveraging #blockchain and #AI to innovate the sports betting market. The knowledge gained from this course will be instrumental in driving our mission forward, enabling us to provide unparalleled solutions in the industry. #DecentralizedSportsBetting Special thanks to Christopher Naudi, Sportsbook & iGaming Product Specialist, for designing and delivering this outstanding course. With over 20yrs of experience, his insights and expertise were invaluable. Thank you, Christopher Naudi, and iGaming Academy for this exceptional learning experience! #SportTrade #SportsBetting #SportsbookManagement #Blockchain #AI #Innovation

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🚨 Big changes are coming to the Premier League! 🚨 Starting in the 2025/26 season, new financial rules will cap club spending on player wages, transfers, and agent fees. Clubs will be limited to spending 85% of their total revenue. Additionally, the new “Top to Bottom Anchoring” rule will tie spending limits to the revenue of the league’s lowest earners. But that’s not all – VAR is getting an overhaul too! From next season, referees will explain VAR decisions directly to fans in the stadium via microphones. This change aims to enhance transparency and improve the match-day experience. What do you think about these changes? Will the spending cap help create a fairer competition? And will the new VAR communication method make the game more enjoyable for fans? Let’s discuss! ⚽💬 #PremierLeague #Football #VAR #FinancialFairPlay Read more below http://surl.li/uptxd

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📊 Most #PremierLeague goal involvements by central midfielders in the last two seasons: ➠ Martin Ødegaard (40) ➠ Kevin De Bruyne (37) ➠ Bruno Fernandes (34) ➠ James Maddison (32) ➠ Pascal Gross (31) 🚀 Become a football #BigData expert! New edition begins on October 15th! 👉 https://vist.ly/35pmr #Stats #DataAnalytics #DataScience #SportsBigData #IA #SportsAnalytics #Data #SportsData #Innovation #MachineLearning

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