The Math Used in Professional Soccer


Article Summary: The largest portion of number involvement used in soccer is estimations. However, speed and velocity can be considered, like how much force a goalkeeper should exert to get the ball away, the angle of the shot to determine the rebound, all these are demonstrated in soccer.

Math concepts are the basis for almost all sports including professional soccer. One of the best ways to teach a student certain forms of math is to introduce them to a fantasy sports team. This way they will be interested in the sport while they are learning various aspects of math without even realizing it. Students will have to understand the various lengths and widths of different regulation playing fields, measured in meters. Then, letting l represent length and w represent width, describe each of these dimensions using four different inequalities. Even if kids are not big sports fans they will still get excited about learning and practicing math. It is advantageous for parents and teachers alike to use fantasy sports as part of their curriculum.

Students create fantasy teams by picking real-life professional soccer players, and then follow their players' statistics and calculate their teams' total points using algebraic or non algebraic methods specifically designed to complement the math skills they're learning. The task of a goalkeeper involves geometry. If an opposing player is approaching the goalkeeper, the goalkeeper needs to know where to stand to have the best chance at defending the score. Usually the goalkeeper will try to be on the angle bisector of the lines from that player to the goal posts.

If you look carefully at a soccer ball you might notice that it is the intersection of two Platonic solids, the icosahedrons and the dodecahedron. The dodecahedron has 12 five sided faces and the icosahedrons has 20 six sided faces. At this point you begin to get into more advanced mathematics for example when you learn that a cube has 6 faces, 12 edges, and 8 corners. These are all concepts about what numbers relate to solids. There is also a lot of probability involved with soccer too. Players need to figure out what the probability is of an opponent scoring a goal based on the positioning of both the kicker and the goalkeeper. There is a great degree of relying on numbers in the game of soccer. Players must comprehend and understand the role played by numbers, graphs, geometry, algebra, angles, area, surveys, and chance data in the game of soccer; for example, how a goalie relies on the properties of angles to know where to stand when defending the goals, and on data analysis and probability to help him save a penalty kick.

The largest portion of number involvement used in soccer is estimations. However, speed and velocity can be considered, like how much force a goalkeeper should exert to get the ball away, the angle of the shot to determine the rebound, all these are demonstrated in soccer. The curve can also be calculated using math, at a higher level, if need be. Soccer is a great way to drill math facts in either a home or school setting. Regardless of the way that the sport of soccer is introduced to the students when it is brought in and includes the various math procedures that are involved with the sport it is a very beneficial learning tool. Soccer is also gender friendly as opposed to football and hockey, for most. There are so many degrees of math that are to be learned from soccer that it can be used for younger students for low level math basics and then can advance as the students age to the point of learning and understanding more advanced mathematical procedures. Teaching students is always more effective when it involves something fun and something that students enjoy. That is what is great about soccer, it is a game that is enjoyed by both males and females and also includes those of all ages.