Collection of this data is done on two fronts, each with a separate Button Template. The first is focused on the analysis of individual players, where the Descriptors are used for statistical analysis. The second concentrates on team performance and the analysis of game systems.

“These templates were created after many meetings to agree on what aspects should be included in order to collect data that was most relevant to us,” explains Ramón Vázquez, Head of the Analysis Department. “They were created in collaboration with various departments at the club. The Methodology Department, for example, had input into the templates which deal with game systems.”  

These two templates form the core of the video tagging work...but they are not the only ones.

The increasing workload of the Analysis Department has brought new demands and, therefore, the need for new templates. Take training, for example:

“We create a template that is used to tag specific actions according to the needs of the coaches. The communication between them and us is constant in order to outline and improve the work”, says Ramón.

A Frantic Start to the Week

“Monday and Tuesday are busy days for us and we need to put in many hours”, continues Ramón. “This time is very important to us in order to get the most up-to-date info into the hands of the coaches. This info isn’t necessarily vital to the coaches as their plans don’t change too much depending on the info we feed them, but we like to get them up to speed as quickly as possible. At Sevilla, we don’t change the entire game plan according to the data from one game, but it always helps to be informed, so we try to give all the coaches access to the information before Wednesday.” 

“I still remember when I started working in this field, on my own”, Ramón reminisces. It was complicated. I could cut games and create clips, yes. But I couldn’t categorise my actions, something which is absolutely essential for me today.

“With Nacsport this isn’t just possible to do, it’s also extremely simple. It saves us a lot of time and enriches our work. Before, creating a relevant video clip would take time, now it just takes a press of a button. Thanks to this we’ve freed up time to work with other departments and everything is much better organised.”

The tagging, which as we’ve said is always carried out on Monday and Tuesday, is done retrospectively from video files which they have filmed themselves. Real-time analysis is less common and usually reserved for those teams which are closer to the professional realm such as Sevilla Atlético.

Once the tagging work has been completed, it has to be presented to the coaches and players. And, once again, the tools provided by Nacsport are essential to this task.

“The main mode of communication with the coaches is through the Dashboard. We’ve developed a model with a summary of the match, so they can come to the office and see a summary of the match filtered through Nacsport. There’s no simpler method!”

But that’s not the only method of communication. Presentations, adapted to the needs of each coach, are also created.

“The time that we save through working with Nacsport is amazing. Instead of watching four or five whole games, we can watch a quick list of relevant actions in minutes. Without a doubt, using this software allows us to be more efficient and focus on other aspects such as improving the teams and players.”

Departmental Structure

Until last season, each analyst would specialise in a particular area of a match before submitting individual reports to coaching staff. Last summer, however, there was a change to the working methodology, with each analyst concentrating on a specific team as opposed to area.

By doing this, they were able to optimise their time, especially when sometimes playing two games per week. They can now analyse more games and more opponents, often reaching an average of 5 or 6 games per week.

“This change has allowed us to manage our work in a much more efficient manner, “ say both Ramón Vázquez and his colleague Juan Antonio Guzmán.

Short, Medium and Long Term Analysis

Analysis at Sevilla FC comes in various different guises. There’s the short-term, weekly analysis for preparing matches, and medium and long term, information that allows for the analysis of patterns, models and methodologies of academy work.

This includes, for example, work with academy management or with the Technical Department, to which information is provided on individual players to follow. The corresponding coach receives the requested videos and, from there, the work is done.

“We’re at the service of the club and we want the information we provide to be used by everyone. Although it’s not our main role, we can provide information to the Recruitment Department as and when they require it. We give them videos, lists and presentations on potential signings.”