At the elite level, teams are increasingly inclined to play an offensive, high pressing game. This requires them to deploy a high defensive line, as they look to simultaneously squeeze the space and dominate possession. If you look at the data from 2023/24, the lowest...

Football has been a much-loved British organised sport since 1863. The Football Association (FA) was founded in October of this year, forming the basis for modern football. The first official set of rules was published, becoming the first step in standardising the...

Despite the excessive amounts of money that continue to flow throughout global football, the world transfer record hasn’t been broken for seven years now. This is the longest such sequence since Kaka’s £56 million move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, which came...

While the iconic Champions League dominates UEFA competition, it’s not the only European trophy up for grabs on the continent. There’s a second tier competition too, with this now known as the UEFA Europa League. However, this has experienced several different reboots...

England is home to many of the oldest professional football clubs in the world, including Notts County (who were founded in 1862), Stoke City (1863) and Wrexham (1864). Because of this, it’s no surprise that England was the first country to establish a fully...

2022 saw the 22nd iteration of the FIFA World Cup, with Qatar assuming hosting duties. This was the first World Cup to be held during the winter, and was ultimately won by Argentina on penalties after a pulsating final against France. Of course, 2030 will see the...

While the FA Cup remains England’s premier cup competition in England, the League Cup (or EFL Cup) is also contested every year on these shores. Unlike the FA Cup, however, this is only open to clubs in the English Football League, with non-league sides ineligible to...

The 2024/25 campaign will see the expansion of the UEFA Champions League, which remains the single most prestigious club competition in the world. It will now include 36 rather than 32 competing teams during the tournament proper, while the initial group stage will be...

The sport of football is synonymous with England, which is widely considered to be the home of the so-called “beautiful game”. Certainly, many of the oldest and most prestigious football clubs originated in England and the UK, while the world’s first professional...

In 1863, the recently founded Football Association (FA) published the first unified set of rules for the sport. It was around the same time that football clubs started to form in England, and in July 1871, FA Secretary C. W. Alcock suggested that a ‘Challenge Cup’...

Modern football is littered with jargon, with some terms often used interchangeably despite meaning slightly different things. Take positional play and positional rotation, for example, which share many similarities but are noticeably different from a coaching...

For recently successful managers like Carlo Ancelotti, Jose Mourinho and Diego Simeone, tactical flexibility was central to everything they achieved. However, they continue to work in an era where many coaches are apparently wedded to a single footballing philosophy...

Although Bayer Leverkusen’s treble charge and 51-match unbeaten run was ended by an inspired Atalanta side in the Europa League final, Xabi Alonso’s men have since added the DFB-Pokal to their historic Bundesliga triumph. ‌ This league and cup double has propelled...

The tactics deployed by elite football teams tend to influence the low-tier and grassroot levels of the sport. ‌ Recently, the success of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City has encouraged coaches to create position and possession-based systems, which require a certain...

Much of the recent criticism of Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has revolved around a perceived lack of team identity, with his side at times appearing to press high and simultaneously maintain a relatively low defensive block. ‌ Ultimately, the definition and...