Research Grant Jury decides on 2013/14 projects

The jury for the UEFA Research Grant Programme – supporting the work of doctoral and post-doctoral researchers studying European football – has chosen research grant proposals for the 2013/14 season. The jury has also heard the final presentations of the researchers who received grants for 2012/13.

The jury carried out a comprehensive review of the 59 applications received, and has chosen five proposals for the 2013/14 season:

- Does anti-racist activism by fans challenge racism and xenophobia in European football? Mark Doidge, University of Brighton, UK

- The effects of mental fatigue on repeated sprint ability and cognitive performance in football players, Samuele Marcora, University of Kent, UK

- Player development and coaching using an age-stage holistic PPSTT approach in youth football in the performance pathway in six European countries, Julian North, Leeds Metropolitan University, UK

- Football as a novel therapeutic approach to pediatric obesity. A randomised controlled trial and its effects on fitness, body composition, cardiometabolic and oxiadive markers, André Seabra, University of Porto, Portugal

- Reziproke Wirkungen der Rezipiendeten gegenüber sozial angagierten Fussballverbänden & -vereinen (Reciprocal effects involving the recipients of social engagement by football associations and clubs), Stefan Walzel, Deutsche Sporthochschule Köln, Germany

The jury decided that each selected proposal should be awarded a research grant of €17,000. The researchers will now devote the coming nine months to research and prepare their report to European football's governing body next year.

"This year, we again received an impressive amount of interesting proposals from all over Europe, and even worldwide," said Research Grant Jury chairman William Gaillard (UEFA). "It is great to see that some proposals really have the potential to help UEFA in its activities and mission."

The UEFA Research Grant jury meeting also saw the chosen researchers for the 2012/13 season present the results of their work:

- Fan relationship and national football association in Europe: Better understanding for better management, Guillaume Bodet, University of Loughborough (UK)

- The validation and application of an integrated metabolic cost paradigm using high frequency GPS technology in soccer to assess match play training load, Doran Dominic, Liverpool John Moores University (UK)

- Economic effects of UEFA's Financial Fair Play regulations, Markus Lang, University of Zurich (Switzerland)

- Influence on injurability and injury recovery time of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes involved connective tissue repair, Ricard Pruna, University of Barcelona (Spain)

- Race/ethnicity, gender and audience receptions of televised football in the Netherlands and the UK, Jacco von Sterkenburg, University of Utrecht (Netherlands)

The UEFA Research Grant Programme has a number of invaluable attributes. Firstly, the research in question helps to produce interesting new information on European football and, secondly, also helps the European football family fulfill its mission, thereby making its decision-making more effective and informed.

The UEFA Research Grant jury comprises a chairman, four representatives of the European football family and four academics known internationally for their work linked to European football/sport. Proposals may be made in the following areas: economics, history, law, management, political science, sociology and medical sciences.

Although all research proposals are welcome, proposals addressing the UEFA priority topics listed below are especially encouraged:

• governance and regulation in European football
• the specificity and autonomy of sport
• the financial sustainability of professional football
• the evolution of the game (e.g. tactics, competition formats, rules, player characteristics)
• women's football
• grassroots football and the development of youth players (e.g. models for encouraging young people to play football)
• the labour market (e.g. transfers, player agents, third-party ownership of players)
• social and ethnic integration through football
• adequate number of games per season (e.g. for a football player)
• football in extreme conditions (e.g. cold, heat)
• links between medical conditions and playing football