{
  "abstract": "Antenucci, L, Schmidt, C, and Malatesta, D. Comparing match-related physical performance using arbitrary and individual running speed, acceleration, and deceleration zones in professional football players (part 1). J Strength Cond Res 40(11): e1182–e1189, 2026—This study aimed to compare match-related physical performance and its match-to-match variability using arbitrary (ARB) and individualized (IND) intensity thresholds for running speed, accelerations (ACC), and decelerations (DEC) in a professional football team. Global navigation satellite system data from an entire Swiss first-division season (30 matches) were analyzed for 14 players. The match-related physical performance was assessed across 4 intensity zones for running speed, ACCs, and DECs: low-speed running, high-speed running (HSR), very high-speed running, sprinting and ACC1/2/3/4/DEC1/2/3/4. The distance covered and the number of ACCs/DECs in each zone were recorded through 3 thresholds for both ARB (speed: 14.4/19.8/25.2 km·h−1; ACCs/DECs: 1.0/2.0/3.0 m·s−2) and IND (speed: speed at the second lactate threshold, peak incremental speed, and anaerobic sprint reserve; ACCs/DECs: 25%/50%/75% of maximal ACCs/DECs). Within-player match-to-match variability coefficient of variation was also calculated. Significant differences were found between both methods across all zones (p ≤ 0.033). Running distances were significantly greater in IND than in ARB for all zones (4.5–110.7%) except HSR (−37.0%). Accelerations/DECs were significantly greater in IND for ACC1 (74.7%) and DEC1 (117.9%), but lower for ACC2/3/4/DEC2/3/4 (−16.0% to −96.3%). The number of ACC4/DEC4 was nearly negligible in IND. Coefficients of variation were lower for sprint distance, and greater for ACC4/DEC4 in IND than in ARB. The significant differences between ARB and IND running speed zones suggest that IND method should be used to assess match-related running performance accurately, while ARB method should be used for quantifying the number of ACCs/DECs.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Institute of Sport Sciences, Biomechanics & Integrative Physiology of Exercise Dynamics (BIPED) laboratory, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; and",
    "Performance Laboratory Football Club Lucerne, Lucerne, Switzerland"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Leo Antenucci"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Christian Schmidt"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Davide Malatesta"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/6gjhkb0t1zz1g.bib",
  "cited_by": 1,
  "doi": "10.1519/jsc.0000000000005545",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13722418/",
  "id": "6gjhkb0t1zz1g",
  "issns": [
    "1064-8011",
    "1533-4287"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000005545",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2732|Sports Performance and Training"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7163009841",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": "PMC13722418",
  "pmid": "42224062",
  "published": "2026-05-29",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/6gjhkb0t1zz1g.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-03T12:22:55Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13722418",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000005545"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2732|Sports Performance and Training",
      "subfield": "surgery"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Comparing Match-Related Physical Performance Using Arbitrary and Individual Running Speed, Acceleration, and Deceleration Zones in Professional Football Players (Part 1)",
  "title_text": "Comparing Match-Related Physical Performance Using Arbitrary and Individual Running Speed, Acceleration, and Deceleration Zones in Professional Football Players (Part 1)",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-03T12:22:55Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/6gjhkb0t1zz1g",
  "venue": "Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research",
  "versions": []
}