Related papers: Regularized Adjusted Plus-Minus Models for Evaluat…
In this paper, we study interaction dynamics in the game of football-soccer in the context of ball possession intervals. To do so, we analyze a database comprising one season of the five major football leagues of Europe. Using this input,…
We investigate methods for penalized regression in the presence of missing observations. This paper introduces a method for estimating the parameters which compensates for the missing observations. We first, derive an unbiased estimator of…
We propose using Network Science as a complementary tool to analyze player and team behavior during a football match. Specifically, we introduce four kinds of networks based on different ways of interaction between players. Our approach's…
Continuous-time assessments of game outcomes in sports have become increasingly common in the last decade. In American football, only discrete-time estimates of play value were possible, since the most advanced public football datasets were…
We propose a bottom-up approach to the study of possession and its outcomes for association football, based on probabilistic finite state automata with transition probabilities described by a Markov process. We show how even a very simple…
In-game win probability models, which provide a sports team's likelihood of winning at each point in a game based on historical observations, are becoming increasingly popular. In baseball, basketball and American football, they have become…
Scientifically evaluating soccer players represents a challenging Machine Learning problem. Unfortunately, most existing answers have very opaque algorithm training procedures; relevant data are scarcely accessible and almost impossible to…
In the sports of soccer, hockey and basketball the most commonly used statistics for player performance assessment are divided into two categories: offensive statistics and defensive statistics. However, qualitative assessments of…
Quantitative analysis of soccer players' passing ability focuses on descriptive statistics without considering the players' real contribution to the passing and ball possession strategy of their team. Which player is able to help the…
The availability of tracking data in football presents unique opportunities for analyzing team shape and player roles, but leveraging it effectively remains challenging. This difficulty arises from the significant overlap in player…
A typical approach to quantify the contribution of each player in basketball uses the plus-minus method. The ratings obtained by such a method are estimated using simple regression models and their regularized variants, with response…
In this paper, we describe an approach to rank sport players based on their efficiency. Although is extremely useful to analyze the performance of team games there is no unanimity on the use of a single index to perform such a ranking. We…
Transfers in professional football (soccer) are risky investments because of the large transfer fees and high risks involved. Although data-driven models can be used to improve transfer decisions, existing models focus on describing…
In a soccer game, the information provided by detecting and tracking brings crucial clues to further analyze and understand some tactical aspects of the game, including individual and team actions. State-of-the-art tracking algorithms…
In recent years, many different approaches have been proposed to quantify the performances of soccer players. Since player performances are challenging to quantify directly due to the low-scoring nature of soccer, most approaches estimate…
Modelling the trajectorial motion of humans along the ground is a foundational task in the quantitative analysis of sports like association football. Most existing models of football player motion have not been validated yet with respect to…
This paper aims to reduce randomness in football by analysing the role of lineups in final scores using machine learning prediction models we have developed. Football clubs invest millions of dollars on lineups and knowing how individual…
The chances to win a football match can be significantly increased if the right tactic is chosen and the behavior of the opposite team is well anticipated. For this reason, every professional football club employs a team of game analysts.…
We propose a versatile joint regression framework for count responses. The method is implemented in the R add-on package GJRM and allows for modelling linear and non-linear dependence through the use of several copulae. Moreover, the…
A hockey player's plus-minus measures the difference between goals scored by and against that player's team while the player was on the ice. This measures only a marginal effect, failing to account for the influence of the others he is…