Comparative Analysis of Soccer Performance Intensity of the Pre-Post-Lockdown COVID-19 in LaLiga

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 18; no. 7; p. 3685
• Main Authors: García-Aliaga, Abraham, Marquina, Moisés, Cordón-Carmona, Antonio, Sillero-Quintana, Manuel, de la Rubia, Alfonso, Vielcazat, Silvestre Jos, Nevado Garrosa, Fabio, Refoyo Román, Ignacio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.04.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Athletic Performance; Collaboration; Communicable Disease Control; Comparative analysis; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Data analysis; Deceleration; Global positioning systems; GPS; Humans; Pandemics; Running; SARS-CoV-2; Schedules; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Soccer; Teams; Tournaments & championships; Spain; performance; match running; physical demands; activity profile; elite soccer
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18073685

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) forced a stoppage in the 2019/2020 season of LaLiga™, possibly influencing performance indicators in the return to competition. Therefore, here, we evaluated whether the stoppage due to the coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID-19) lockdown influenced physical performance compared to the start of LaLiga in terms of high-intensity efforts. Using a semi-automatic, multiple-camera system, running activities during 22 matches were analyzed. We compared the first 11 matches of the season (pre-lockdown) with the 11 matches just after the restart of LaLiga™ (post-lockdown). The results showed higher ( < 0.05) performance in the pre-lockdown period compared with the post-lockdown period, including in medium-speed running (14.1-21 km/h), high-speed running (21.1-24 km/h), and sprinting speed running distances (>24 km/h). However, the number of accelerations/min and decelerations/min were significantly higher during the post-lockdown period. Therefore, we conclude that the stoppage due to the COVID-19 lockdown generated lower physical performance in the post-lockdown period compared with the pre-lockdown period, most likely due to the accumulation of matches (congested schedules).