Assessment of the relationship between physical performance and percentage change-of-direction deficit in highly trained female football players

Purpose: Different studies indicate that female players in team sports, such as soccer, tend to have a lower change of direction deficit (CODD) than their male counterparts and that players who performed better in linear and curved sprints tended to have a worse CODD, suggesting that maximum speed does not equate to a faster change of direction (COD). This study assessed how performance variables related to speed and jumping influence the variability of %CODD among adult highly trained female soccer players. Methods: Fifty-two highly trained female soccer players (age: 23.1 ± 3.25 years; height: 163.6 ± 5.49 cm; weight: 59.7 ± 5.71 kg) participated in this study and performed 180COD, 40-m sprint, countermovement jump (CMJ), and standing broad jump (SBJ) tests. Results: Significant correlations were found between 180CODL, %CODDR, %CODDL, and between-limbs SBJ asymmetry (r = 0.28 to 0.74). A very large correlation existed between %CODDR and %CODDL (r = 0.91). Regression analyses indicated a strong inverse relationship between the 10-m sprint time and %CODDR and %CODDL. No predictive models were found for 180COD in either limb. Differences in performance variables such as 180CODR, 180CODL, and asymmetry %CODD were significant between the high and low %CODD groups, with moderate to large effect sizes. Conclusions: The present study suggests that specific physical performance variables, particularly acceleration and unilateral horizontal jumping, are vital to improving COD in highly trained female soccer players, highlighting the need for specific training interventions.

Accepted author manuscript version reprinted, by permission, from International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 2024, https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2024-0198. © Human Kinetics, Inc.