The relative age effect (RAE) is associated with (dis)advantages in competitive sports.
While the RAE in elite male soccer reveals a skewed birthdate distribution in relation to a
certain cut-off date, research of RAE in elite female soccer is affected by small number
of samples and conflicting results. The purpose of this study was to investigate the
RAE in elite adult German soccer regarding gender and competition level. The sample
comprised 680 female and 1,083 male players of the two top German leagues during
the 2019/20 season and German national teams (A-Team to Under 19). Differences
between the observed and expected birthdate distributions were analyzed using chisquare
statistics and effect sizes followed by calculating odds ratios. Results showed
a statistically significant RAE with small effect size across all players included for both
genders (female players: P < 0.001, W = 0.16, male players: P < 0.001, W = 0.23). The
identified RAE was based on an over-representation of players born at the beginning of
the year. According to gender and competition level, RAEs were more pronounced in
German male soccer. While significant RAEs were found among males in the first two
leagues (first league: P < 0.001, W = 0.19, second league: P < 0.001, W = 0.26), the
RAE of females was more pronounced in the second league (first league: P = 0.080,
W = 0.16, second league: P = 0.002, W = 0.20). The analysis of RAE regarding the
national teams revealed a statistically significant RAE with large effect size for only the
youngest investigated age group of male players (Under 19: P = 0.022, W = 0.52).
Our data show an RAE in female and male German adult soccer, which could be
accompanied by a loss of valuable elite players during the youth phase of the career.
Consequently, the pool of talented players at the adult level would be limited.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa:de:qucosa:84444 |
| Date | 31 March 2023 |
| Creators | Götze, Martin, Hoppe, Matthias W. |
| Publisher | Frontiers Research Foundation |
| Source Sets | Hochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion, doc-type:article, info:eu-repo/semantics/article, doc-type:Text |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | 1664-1078, 587023 |
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