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. 2019 Oct 23;16(21):4055.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph16214055.

Prevalence of Relative Age Effect in Russian Soccer: The Role of Chronological Age and Performance

Eduard Nikolayevich Bezuglov  1 , Pantelis Theodoros Nikolaidis  2 , Vladimir Khaitin  3 , Elvira Usmanova  4 , Anastasiya Luibushkina  5 , Alexey Repetiuk  6 , Zbigniew Waśkiewicz  7   8 , Dagmara Gerasimuk  9 , Thomas Rosemann  10 , Beat Knechtle  11   12
Affiliations

Prevalence of Relative Age Effect in Russian Soccer: The Role of Chronological Age and Performance

Eduard Nikolayevich Bezuglov et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

The relative age effect (RAE) has been well studied in adolescent and adult soccer players; however, less information has been available about children engaged in regular soccer training and the role of performance. Thus, the aim of the present study was to examine the prevalence of RAE in children and adolescent soccer players, as well as the role of age and performance. Russian soccer players (n = 10,446) of various ages, playing positions and performance levels were examined for their date of birth. It was observed that RAE was widespread in Russian soccer teams of all age groups. RAE was most pronounced in children teams of the top tier Russian soccer academies and junior Russia national teams, where the proportions of soccer players born in the first quarter were 43.9% and 39.8%, respectively, whereas those born in the fourth quarter of the year were 7.7% and 6.3%, respectively. In top tier soccer academies, RAE did not vary by age group. In the middle tier soccer academies, RAE was less pronounced. It was still prevalent in the junior teams of the top tier clubs of the Russian Premier League, where 14.3% of the soccer players were born in the fourth quarter of the year compared to 42.9% born in the first quarter of the year. RAE can be observed in the top tier Russian adult teams as well, although it is less pronounced there. In summary, RAE is highly prevalent in Russian children and junior soccer and is associated with the level of competitiveness. At the same time, the proportion of players born in the fourth quarter of the year is higher in adult teams than in junior and youth teams, which is most likely due to the wider selection of players, not limited by their age and place of residence. In junior teams, RAE results in a bias towards selection of players who are more physically mature, whereas children who may be more talented but are less developed due to their younger chronological age tend to be overlooked.

Keywords: Russian football; competition in football; relative age effect; youth football.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Relative age effect (RAE) by performance group. Top = top-tier soccer academy; Middle = middle-tier soccer academy; Private = academy of private school.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Relative age effect (RAE) by age group in top (left) and middle-tier soccer academies (right). U—indicates age group.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The prevalence of Relative Age Effect in middle tier soccer academies: Kozhany Myach Roman Pavlyuchenko Children’s (A), subdivision of Football School Lokomotiv (B), subdivision of Football Academy Chertanovo (C), and Children’s and Youth Sports School of Stavropol (D).
Figure 4
Figure 4
The prevalence of RAE in junior and youth Russia national football teams (A), in the leading clubs of the Russian Premier League (B), in youth teams of leading non-English clubs participating in the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Youth League championships (C), in youth teams of leading English clubs participating in the UEFA Youth League championships of 2018–2019 (D), in the leading Russian adult football teams (E), and in the top 11 countries according to International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) rating as of 6 April 2019, as well as the Germany national team (2014 World champion) and the Russia national team (World championship host) (F).
Figure 5
Figure 5
The prevalence of RAE in the leading Russian adult football teams (A), top tier football academies (B), junior national teams (C), and junior teams of the leading Russian football clubs (D).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Relative age effect (RAE) by playing position among adult Russian football players who played in all RPL teams from 2001 to 2017 (total n = 7263). G = goalkeeper, D = defender, M = midfielder, F = forward.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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