El Efecto de la Edad Relativa en las siete mejores ligas profesionales de fútbol femenino de la Unión de Federaciones Europeas de Fútbol (UEFA)

  1. José María Yagüe Cabezón 1
  2. Beatriz Fernández García 1
  3. Juan Carlos Redondo Castán 1
  4. Jose María Izquierdo Velasco 2
  1. 1 Universidad de León
    info

    Universidad de León

    León, España

    ROR https://ror.org/02tzt0b78

  2. 2 Universidad de Valladolid
    info

    Universidad de Valladolid

    Valladolid, España

    ROR https://ror.org/01fvbaw18

Journal:
Retos: nuevas tendencias en educación física, deporte y recreación

ISSN: 1579-1726,  1988-2041

Year of publication: 2024

Issue: 54

Pages: 518-528

Type: Article

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More publications in: Retos: nuevas tendencias en educación física, deporte y recreación

Abstract

The aim of this study is to analyze the dates of birth of female football players (n=2,250) corresponding to the 86 teams that make up the top seven women's professional leagues of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), in order to observe the relative age effect (RAE: Relative Age Effect) over the 2020-2021 season. In turn, it analyzes the RAE according to the playing position of the players and the ranking of the teams at the end of the season. The date of birth of each player was classified into four semesters (Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4). The chi-square test was applied to analyze the observed and expected frequencies and percentages of birth months. To test for differences in the distribution between subgroups, the odds ratio (95% CI) was calculated for the different quartiles. The results confirmed a higher representation of players born in Q1 and Q2 for all the leagues studied, except in the Primera Iberdrola (Spain). This significance was repeated mainly in midfielders and, to a lesser extent, in goalkeepers, defenders and forward. Finally, there are significant differences depending on the classification of the team in the mid-table and bottom three groups. In conclusion, the presence of RAE in European women's professional soccer can be appreciated, this appearance in practice can mean an unfocused selection of talent in women's soccer, with a recruitment oriented to the short term, to the immediate results to the detriment of sporting talent.

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