Effects of the level of expertise on the physical and technical demands in futsal

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences between elite and semi-elite futsal players in terms of the technical and physical demands of the sport. 12 elite senior teams that competed in the World Cup 2012 and 5 futsal clubs that competed in the north of England were selected non-randomly. Time-motion analysis was used to quantify physical movements during matches and the movement classifications included standing, walking, jogging and sprinting. Technical skills assessed were offensive movements including the percentages of successful passes, dribbles and shots. The results of Hotelling T2 showed that there were significant differences in both the technical and physical demands between the two groups (p<0.05). The follow-up tests showed that elite players demonstrated more successful attempts in passing, dribbling and shooting. In addition elite players spent more time during a match on sprinting, whereas semi-elite players recorded higher percentages on standing and walking activities (p<0.05). In conclusion, the findings of this study showed that by improving the proficiency of skills through practice the ability to exploit space during a match is also improved through using more intensive activities and the most accurate performance predictors in attacking play are passes, dribbles and shots.