Goal-scoring patterns and situational dynamics in professional futsal: a multivariate analysis with a predictive approach
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v76.117601Keywords:
futsal, goal types, multivariate analysis, situational variables , tactical performanceAbstract
Introduction: Futsal is a sport in which goals and situational variables influence competitive performance. Understanding these relationships allows for the optimization of tactical planning.
Objective: The objective of this study was to identify whether there is any type of goal that differentiates situational variables of futsal competition.
Methodology: A total of 5903 goals were observed in matches from the Spanish Men’s National Futsal League. The situational variables analyzed were match result, partial score, team classification, and tournament phase. The independent variable type of goal included: throw-in, corner kick, fouls, second play, double penalty, penalty, pressure release, positional attack, numerical superiority, numerical inferiority, transitions, and ball recoveries. Chi-square tests and Cramer’s V, correspondence analysis, and multinomial logistic regression were applied.
Results: Significant differences were found between type of goal and result (<.001), score (<.02), and classification (<.001). Cramer’s V indicated a strong association with result and moderate associations with score and classification. Correspondence analysis showed clear segregation between categories, and the regression model identified goals scored in inferiority and superiority as the most robust predictors.
Discussion: These findings are consistent with previous research highlighting the relevance of positional attack, transitions, and set plays, confirming the tactical importance of these situations.
Conclusions: The results can be used by coaches to design training sessions, strategies, and tactics adapted to the competitive context of futsal.
References
Abbott, W., Brownlee, T. E., Harper, L. D., Naughton, R. J., & Clifford, T. (2018). The independent effects of match location, match result and the quality of opposition on subjective wellbeing in under 23 soccer players: A case study. Research in Sports Medicine, 26(3), 262–275. https://doi.org/10.1080/15438627.2018.1447476
Álvarez-Medina, J.; Murillo-Lorente, V. & García-Felipe, A. (2018a). Influence of Change of Regulation on the Goals Achieved in Futsal. International Journal of Medicine and Science of Physical Activity and Sport. 18(70), 213-226. http://dx.doi.org/10.15366/rimcafd2018.70.002 pp. 213-226.
Álvarez-Medina, J., Murillo-Lorente, V., García-Felipe, A., & Parra-Artal, A. (2018b). Observational anal-ysis of the goals the two seasons of the spanish professional futsal league. International Journal of Medicine & Science of Physical Activity & Sport, 18(69), 27-42. https://doi.org/10.15366/rimcafd2018.69.002
Amatria, M., Álvarez, J., Ramírez, J., & Murillo, V. (2021). Identification of the Patterns Produced in the Offensive Sequences That End in a Goal in European Futsal. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.578332
Anguera, M. T., & Mendo, A. H. (2015). Técnicas de análisis en estudios observacionales en ciencias del deporte. Cuadernos de psicología del deporte, 15(1), 13-30.
Arboix-Alió, J., Aguilera-Castells, J., Buscà, B., Miró, A., Hileno, R., Trabal, G., & Peña, J. (2021). Situational variables in elite rink hockey: Effect of match location, team level, scoring first and match sta-tus at halftime on the competitive outcome. International Journal of Performance Analysis in Sport, 21(6), 1101–1116. https://doi.org/10.1080/24748668.2021.1976057
Arias, H. S., & Alonso, V. L. (2024). Influence of situational variables on changes in direction of ball pos-session in football. Retos, 53, 233–241. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v53.101859
Augusto, D., Brito, J., Aquino, R., Figueiredo, P., Eiras, F., Tannure, M., Veiga, B., & Vasconcellos, F. (2021). Contextual Variables Affect Running Performance in Professional Soccer Players: A Brief Re-port. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 3. https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2021.778813
Ayuso-Moreno, R., Fuentes-García, J. P., Collado-Mateo, D., & Villafaina, S. (2020). Heart rate variability and pre-competitive anxiety according to the demanding level of the match in female soccer athletes. Physiology & Behavior, 222, 112926. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.112926
Ayuso-Moreno, R. M., Fuentes-García, J. P., Nobari, H., & Villafaina, S. (2021). Impact of the Result of Soccer Matches on the Heart Rate Variability of Women Soccer Players. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(17), Article 17. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18179414
FIFA. (2023). Laws of the Game. https://digitalhub.fifa.com/m/2db4520788a5dd8/original/Futsal-Laws-of-the-Game-2022-2023-EN.pdf
García-Rubio, J., Gómez-Ruano, M. Á., Lago-Peñas, C., & Ibáñez, J. S. (2015). Effect of match venue, scor-ing first and quality of opposition on match outcome in the UEFA Champions League. Interna-tional Journal of Performance Analysis in Sport, 15(2), 527–539. https://doi.org/10.1080/24748668.2015.11868811
Gómez-Ruano, M. A., Lago, C., & Pollard, R. (2013). Situational variables. En T. McGarry, P. O’Donoghue, & J. Sampaio (Eds.), Routledge handbook of sports performance analysis (pp. 259–269). Routledge.
Gómez-Ruano, M. A., Méndez, C., Indaburu, A., & Travassos, B. (2019). Goal effectiveness after players’ dismissals in professional futsal teams. Journal of Sports Sciences, 37(8), 857–863. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2018.1531498
Gómez-Ruano, M.A., Moral, J., & Lago-Penas, C. (2015). Multivariate analysis of ball possessions effec-tiveness in elite futsal. Journal of Sports Sciences, 33(20), 2173–2181. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2015.1075168
Gómez-Ruano, M. A., & Pollard, R. (2021). The home advantage phenomenon in sport: history and de-velopment. In Home advantage in sport (pp. 3-12). Routledge.
Gutierrez, J., Castellano, J., Casamichana, D., & Sánchez-Sanchez, J. (2018). Effect of pitch size and time of the match in the physical performance of teams the Spanish Second Division. Retos, 33, 213–216. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v0i33.55587
IBM Corporation. (2022). IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 29.0) [Software de computadora]. https://www.ibm.com/spss/
Julian, R., Page, R. M., & Harper, L. D. (2021). The Effect of Fixture Congestion on Performance During Professional Male Soccer Match-Play: A Systematic Critical Review with Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine, 51(2), 255–273. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01359-9
Longomatch. (2016). Longomatch (Version 8.1) [Software de computadora]. https://www.longomatch.com/
López-Serrano, C., Moreno Arroyo, M. P., Mon-López, D., & Molina Martín, J. J. (2022). In the Opinion of Elite Volleyball Coaches, How Do Contextual Variables Influence Individual Volleyball Perfor-mance in Competitions? Sports, 10(10), Article 10. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports10100156
Méndez, C., Gómez-Ruano, M. A., Rúiz, L. M., & Travassos, B. (2019). Goalkeeper as an outfield player: Shooting chances at critical moments in elite futsal. International Journal of Performance Anal-ysis in Sport, 19(2), 179–191. https://doi.org/10.1080/24748668.2019.1581967
Méndez, C., Gonçalves, B., Santos, J., Ribeiro, J. N., & Travassos, B. (2019). Attacking Profiles of the Best Ranked Teams From Elite Futsal Leagues. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1370. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01370
Rada, V. D. de. (2018). Técnicas multivariantes de Interdependencia. Ra-Ma Editorial.
Rinaldo, M., De Souza, E., Silva, K. A., Fidelis, B., De Angelis, T., Cardoso, P., ... & Ramos, S. (2024). Varia-bles Associated with the Effectiveness of Ball Possession in At-Home Futsal Matches. Interna-tional Journal of Exercise Science, 17(6), 916. https://doi.org/10.70252/GNUR9153
Santos, J., Mendez-Domínguez, C., Nunes, C., Gómez, M. A., & Travassos, B. (2020). Examining the key performance indicators of all-star players and winning teams in elite futsal. International Jour-nal of Performance Analysis in Sport, 20(1), 78–89. https://doi.org/10.1080/24748668.2019.1705643
Sarmento, H., Bradley, P., & Travassos, B. (2015). The Transition from Match Analysis to Intervention: Optimising the Coaching Process in Elite Futsal. International Journal of Performance Analysis in Sport, 15(2), 471–488. https://doi.org/10.1080/24748668.2015.11868807
Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2013). Using Multivariate Statistics. Pearson Education.
Tolosa, J. A. F.-C., Sánchez, L. C., Medina, A. A., Rubio, J. G., & Godoy, S. J. I. (2022). Analysis of the influece of situational variables in professional soccer. Retos, 46, 114–119. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v46.91541
Villarejo-García, D. H., González-Fernández, F. T., Rico-González, M., Pino-Ortega, J., Del Rosso, S., & Pu-che-Ortuño, D. (2024). Technical and tactical performance in professional female futsal play-ers: A descriptive analysis depending on teams level and playing group. International Journal of Performance Analysis in Sport, 0(0), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/24748668.2024.2383092
Villarejo-García, D. H., Navarro-Martínez, C., & Pino-Ortega, J. (2025a). Uso de la estadística multiva-riante para analizar el rendimiento en competiciones de Futsal: revisión sistemática. Retos, (66). https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v66.112361
Villarejo-García, D. H., Navarro-Martínez, C., & Pino-Ortega, J. (2025b). Diseño de un instrumento de observación para la clasificación de goles en fútbol sala. Retos, 73, 215-223. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v73.116456
Villarejo-García, D. H., Navarro-Martínez, C., & Pino-Ortega, J. (2025c). Segmental External Load in Lin-ear Running in Elite Futsal Players: A Multifactorial and Individual Variability Analysis Using Linear Mixed Models. Sports, 13(8), 268. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports13080268
Villarejo-García, D. H., Puche-Ortuño, D., Gómez-Carmona, C. D., & Pino-Ortega, J. (2025). Multivariate analysis of performance indicators in elite women’s futsal: A principal component approach to understanding game dynamics. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 20(6), 2463-2472. https://doi.org/10.1177/17479541251343609
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Diego Hernán Villarejo García, Carlos Navarro Martínez, José Pino Ortega

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and ensure the magazine the right to be the first publication of the work as licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of authorship of the work and the initial publication in this magazine.
- Authors can establish separate additional agreements for non-exclusive distribution of the version of the work published in the journal (eg, to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Is allowed and authors are encouraged to disseminate their work electronically (eg, in institutional repositories or on their own website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as to a subpoena more Early and more of published work (See The Effect of Open Access) (in English).
This journal provides immediate open access to its content (BOAI, http://legacy.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/boaifaq.htm#openaccess) on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. The authors may download the papers from the journal website, or will be provided with the PDF version of the article via e-mail.