Physical Activity during a Prolonged Congested Period in a Top-Class European Football Team

Purpose: the aim of the present study was to examine the variation in physical activity of elite soccer players within successive prolonged periods of fixture congestion over 5 months of competition during the competitive season 2011-2012. methods: sixteen international players, classified into 6 positions (central defenders: cd; full-backs: fb; central defensive midfielders: cdm; wide midfielders: wm; central attacking midfielders: cam; forwards: fw), were examined during the french first league, french cup, and uefa champion’s league matches. the total distance covered at light (<12 km.h^-1), sustained-cruising (>18-21 km.h^-1), high (>21-23 km.h^-1), very high (>23-25 km.h^-1), sub-maximal (>25-27 km.h^-1), and maximal (>27 km.h^-1) intensity running (ir) were measured and analysed using a semi-automatic match analysis system (amisco pro™). results: no differences were observed between congested and non-congested periods (two vs. one match a week, respectively) for the total distance covered at all the speed thresholds over 18 km.h^-1, with no variation in physical fitness over the 5 studied months. specifically to the playing positions, regardless of the congestion periods, fb and wm covered more distance than cdm over 21km.h^-1; fb, wm and fw covered similar distances for all running intensities; and cd and cdm covered shorter distance during non-congested compared to congested periods (p<0.05) at light-ir. conclusion: the present study reveals that prolonged congested match fixture did not affect the high-intensity physical activity of top-class soccer players during official games during a 5 months fixture period.