The 2023 edition of the StatsBomb Conference will return to Wembley Stadium on Tuesday 10th October 2023. The event is known for hosting expert names from the football analytics industry every year, with insights and experiences shared from some of the most forward-thinking sports organisations around the world.
StatsBomb has always had a close connection to the wider analytics community and it’s important to us that this group is represented at this conference.
For that reason, we’re once again inviting you to send us your research proposals to present at the event. The best submissions will be offered the chance to write a paper using exclusive StatsBomb data and present it to an audience of industry professionals.
Proposal Theme
This year, we are looking for papers that follow the theme: Identifying Team Tactical Style of Play
When discussing and quantifying team performance, a key aspect is their tactical and stylistic approach. We're looking for proposals that identify aspects of a team's approach and draw insights from them using StatsBomb’s base and 360 data, as both datasets have multiple features that are primed for investigation. Our base data still stands out as the most rich and contextual dataset in the industry, containing information such as pass footedness, pass height and pressure events. 360 data is tactical event data that adds a snapshot freeze frame around every single event we record, detailing player positioning at the moment each event occurred, allowing for deeper analysis of event data than ever before.
Examples might include:
- Can you identify the approach of a team in-and-out of possession in different phases of play?
- How would you identify team formation/structure using 360 data?
- What approaches do teams take in transition phases?
- How do teams impose or modify their approach based on their opponent, or at home vs away?
- How does a players’ skill-set influence team style?
We’ll be looking for proposals employing novel methods that are able to produce actionable analysis and compelling visualisations to communicate your findings.
Please note: If you've been holding onto an idea that you were planning to submit that doesn't fit the theme above, then do send it in for review. We'll prioritise those that fit the theme, but if we like the idea enough then we'll certainly consider it.
Available Data
The research competition provides a unique opportunity to work with the most comprehensive and contextual event dataset in football. Participants will be given access to:
- 480 or 520 games of StatsBomb Data AND StatsBomb 360 Data from the last two seasons of any Big 5 League. It will be all matches from 10 teams in each league pre-selected by StatsBomb - the author(s) can choose which league they wish to focus on.
Submissions based on the publicly available StatsBomb Data are also welcome.
Proposal Details
The proposal will be judged on the following criteria:
- Originality: StatsBomb has the richest event data in the world, and 360 data is the only dataset of its kind. We’re looking for innovative approaches to analysing it
- Application: Can your work be used to help clubs make better decisions or be the basis for future research?
- Feasibility: Is your proposal a realistic one for the given timeframe?
Both foundational and applied research is welcome. We are dedicated to providing a platform for the most innovative research in football analytics, whether that means theoretical or practical work.
All proposals should include the following information:
- Paper Title
- Research Summary (maximum 500 words) - please cover the following questions:
- What football question are you looking to solve/investigate?
- What analysis and/or modelling technique(s) will you use?
- What data will you require?
- What potential problems do you anticipate?
- What organisation do you work for?
- What is your experience in football?
- What is your experience with data analysis/modelling?
- What experience do you have presenting?
- Are you able to attend the conference and present in person? Note that remote presentations are unlikely to be considered.
Submission: Entries are now closed.
Only one proposal per person or group. Successful proposals will be required to present at the conference (circa 30 minute presentation) and will be given free admission (Maximum of 1 ticket per accepted proposal).
Proposal Review
The proposals will be judged by a team from the data science and analysis departments at StatsBomb.
Candidates will be informed at the latest by 30th June whether or not their proposal has been accepted. The deadline for submission of the final papers is 22nd September ahead of the event on 10th October.
Selected speakers will receive a presentation template and assistance with preparing your presentation and research paper.
The accepted papers for our 2022 Conference can be read here.
If you have any questions, please email conference@statsbomb.com
