Education Courses /

Football Analytics

Each spring, Stats Perform teams up with Birkbeck, University of London to deliver a football analytics module, which outlines the key fundamentals behind data concepts being applied within elite club environments.

The nine week online course is not only made available to students enrolled in Birkbeck’s Sport Management and Business of Football MSc, but can also be completed as a short course by practitioners currently engaged in professional sport.

The 2025 module is set to start on Tuesday 29th April.

Each lecture is delivered online and provides an in-depth overview of applied football analytics, providing a wide foundation that encapsulates both theoretical frameworks and real-world applications.

The principles taught throughout the module have been designed with the student at the centre, with sessions tailored on understanding and applying new skills that can be utilised across a range of roles within professional football.

The module aims to ensure the student leaves with a greater understanding of how data and analytical processes can be used within a professional football club across recruitment, performance analysis and at a wider strategic level.

Alongside insight from Stats Perform staff, the module also includes guest sessions from industry experts possessing considerable industry experience working within clubs and in data application across sports journalism.

FIND OUT MORE AND HOW TO ENROL HERE

Outline of the Module

Week 1 – Tuesday 29th April

Lecture: An Introduction to Data Analytics in Football
This session introduces applied football analytics and its position within the wider context of this industry, sharing insight on the evolution of football analytics, and the various touchpoints in which it can be applied.

Week 2 – Tuesday 6th May

Lecture: An introduction to different technologies for facilitating data analysis
This session introduces the tools that are used within football analytics, focusing on their applications and key uses.

Week 3 – Tuesday 13th May

Lecture: Introduction to statistical models and their application in football
This lecture introduces a catalogue of different models and metrics, illustrating how they can be best applied within professional football.

Week 4 – Tuesday 20th May

Lecture: The importance of data visualisation
This session aims to demonstrate the importance of the visual impact of data and its influence on communicating a message.

Week 5 – Tuesday 27th May

Lecture: Using data in an applied setting
This session demonstrates how the theoretical concepts showcased in previous sessions are applied in real-world scenarios within professional football.

Week 6 –Tuesday 3rd June

Lecture: Collecting, databasing and analysing subjective data and the relationship with more objective data
This session discusses the advantages and disadvantages of subjective and qualitative data.

Week 7 – Tuesday 10th June

Lecture: Managing conversations and negotiating with decision makers
This lecture focuses on how data and analytics can support presentations, discussions and decision-making at senior management level.

Week 8 – Tuesday 17th June

Lecture: The application of data and analytics in strategic planning
This session showcases how different analysis can lead to different conclusions, and the wider impact this can have across an entire football club.

Following the lecture, students will be given a group task to complete prior to the next session.

Week 9 – Tuesday 24th June

Lecture: Group presentation
Through applying the knowledge attained during the first eight lectures, each group will be required to present their task findings for wider discussion.

What do former students say?

Since launching the course in 2019, approaching 30 students sitting the course have gone on secure full-time roles across the football industry globally, in both men’s and women’s football.

We recently caught up with some of these students, who gave an insight into what students can expect if they choose to enrol in 2025.