Collective Tactical Variables

Abstract

The identification and classification of the tactical behavior variables based on positional data could help coaching staffs and sports scientists to properly assess the tactical response during team sports. To date, different classifications have been suggested for tactical behavior. On the one hand, several studies have used a geometric criterion to classify tactical variables and, on the other hand, the number of players has also been used. Since the tactical response depends on the possibilities of (inter)action that are permitted in different sporting games (e.g., from badminton to soccer), the main criteria should be the social structure of the game. Apart from the broader duel structure, it would be interesting to assess tactical behavior according to the cooperative motor interactions between partners and the opposition relationships between adversaries. In addition, the number of players involved should be considered because this feature also determines shared affordances (i.e., the possibilities of interaction). Together with social structure, the relation with time, space, and equipment (e.g., puck) structural parameters should be considered to assess tactical behavior because these features constrain the instrumental motor interactions between players.