How do we know how long is the distance covered by a footballer?

Football is a spectacular kind of sport which requires the players to be able to cover long distances during the game. Nowadays, the amount of kilometers covered by the footballers is counted. But how do we know what the length of the distance is? The answer is simple: technologies make it possible.

How does role specialization affect distances?

According to the statistics, there is a subtle interrelationship between role specializations and distances in football. Goalkeepers do not run as much as other players and by the end of the game they usually have run 2-3 km. Defenders and forwards cover distances equal to 6-9 km. The longest race around the playground belongs to midfielders who can run up to 11 km in 90 minutes.

How is the distance measured?

There are various systems that can measure distances covered by players. The most popular one is TRACAB based on the programs that are used in war aviation for real-time tracking of the aircraft.

The stadium should be well equipped if TRACAB is used. Special HD-cameras are placed around the playground. They are connected with each other and send signals to the server. The footage gets combined so that every player is followed throughout the game. Special technologies in football make it possible to determine the position of each footballer on the field 25 times per second. The accuracy is about 8 centimeters. The coordinates of the players are recorded 140 thousand times during the game. All the information is stored in the server.

What information can be got from the system?

As a result, the system determines various data concerning the game, such as:

• Average and maximum speed of each player;
• The speed of the ball;
• Distances covered by each player.

All the data mentioned above is shown on TV so that every person watching the translation is aware of it. The whole process requires a lot of equipment and stable internet connection. Although technical issues can be faced sometimes, modern technologies help us measure distances covered by players on the field.