Dr Sigrid Olthof
Sport and Exercise Sciences
Faculty of Science
Email: S.B.Olthof@ljmu.ac.uk
Telephone: 0151 231 2782
Dr. Sigrid Olthof is a senior lecturer in Performance Analysis and Analytics in the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences. Her research focuses on football performance of players and teams during practices and games. Sigrid is the Chair of the International Steering Committee on Science and Football.
Sigrid obtained a Bachelor degree in Human Movement Science and a Master degree in Sport Science from the University of Groningen (the Netherlands). She obtained her PhD degree with research in Small-Sided Games in Youth Soccer at the University of Groningen (the Netherlands). In this thesis, she investigated team tactical behaviour in small-sided games and compared this to the actual match.
Sigrid was a postdoctoral research fellow and sport scientist at the University of Michigan (USA). In this role, she researched and monitored athlete's load in American football, basketball, ice hockey, soccer (football), lacrosse, and field hockey. Alongside, she supported coaching and medical staff in the integration of data and technology into training programs, game reports, and return to play protocols
At LJMU, Sigrid's research focus is on performance analysis and analytics in football and other team sports. Her main research topics are small-sided games, training methods, coach behaviour, and wearable technology (such as GPS). She has an interest in sport technology and data to optimise performance and works on the cutting edge of science and practice.
Degrees
2019, University of Groningen, Netherlands, PhD Small-sided games in elite soccer: performance and behavior compared to the official match
2012, University of Groningen, Netherlands, MSc Human Movement Science - Sport, learning, and performance
2010, University of Groningen, Netherlands, BSc Human Movement Science
Certifications
2024, Advance HE, United Kingdom, Leadership in Higher Education
2019, University of Groningen, Netherlands, University Teaching Qualification in Higher Education
Academic appointments
Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Performance Analysis and Analytics, School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, 2020 - present
Postdoctoral Research Fellow Sport Data & Analysis, Exercise and Sport Science Initiative, University of Michigan–Ann Arbor, 2019 - 2020
PhD candidate Small-sided games, Center for Human Movement Sciences, University of Groningen, 2013 - 2019
Postgraduate training
Postdoctoral Training, United States, University of Michigan–Ann Arbor, 2019 - 2020
PhD education and training program, Netherlands, University of Groningen, 2013 - 2019
Journal article
Coutinho D, Gonçalves B, Santos S, Olthof S, Ballester Lengua R, Roca A, Travassos B. 2025. The Role of Offensive and Creative Priming Videos in Enhancing Youth Football Players' Performance During Small-Sided Games Frontiers in Psychology, 16 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Farrugia M, Olthof S, Roberts SJ, Cronin CJ. 2025. Making the Best Use of Time: Analysis of Practice Structure in Maltese Football Coaching MCAST Journal of Applied Research & Practice, 8 :61-75 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Nunes NA, Santos F, Coutinho D, Olthof S, Sampaio M. 2024. Coaches’ perspectives of the use of small-sided games in the professional soccer training environment Journal of Kinesiology and Exercise Sciences, 109 :27-39 DOI Publisher Url Public Url
Morgans R, Kweon D, Ryan B, Ju W, Zmijewski P, Oliveira R, Olthof S. 2023. Playing position and match location affect the number of highintensity efforts more than the quality of the opposition in elite football players Biology of Sport, 41 :29-37 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Olthof SBH, Tureen T, Tran L, Brennan B, Winograd B, Zernicke RF. 2021. Biomechanical Loads and Their Effects on Player Performance in NCAA D-I Male Basketball Games Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 3 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Mamon MA, Olthof SBH, Burns GT, Lepley AS, Kozloff KM, Zernicke RF. 2021. Position-Specific Physical Workload Intensities in American Collegiate Football Training Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 36 :420-426 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Riboli A, Olthof S, Esposito F, Coratella G. 2021. Training elite youth soccer players: area per player in small-sided games to replicate the match demands Biology of Sport, 39 :579-598 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Olthof SBH, Frencken WGP, Lemmink KAPM. 2019. A match-derived relative pitch area facilitates the tactical representativeness of small-sided games for the official soccer match Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 33 :523-530 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Olthof SBH, Frencken WGP, Lemmink KAPM. 2019. When Something Is at Stake: Differences in Soccer Performance in 11 vs. 11 during Official Matches and Training Games Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 33 :167-173 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Olthof SBH, Frencken WGP, Lemmink KAPM. 2018. Match-derived relative pitch area changes the physical and team tactical performance of elite soccer players in small-sided soccer games Journal of Sports Sciences, 36 :1557-1563 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Olthof SBH, Frencken WGP, Lemmink KAPM. 2015. The older, the wider: On-field tactical behavior of elite-standard youth soccer players in small-sided games HUMAN MOVEMENT SCIENCE, 41 :92-102 DOI Author Url Publisher Url
Stoneman B, Olthof S, Burns G, Wong A, Zernicke R. Seasonal Variation of Acceleration and Decelerations by Position in Male Basketball International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, Public Url
Internet publication
Robinson N, Olthof S. 2025. Hyrox: this challenging race could improve your strength, endurance and fitness – here’s the evidence Publisher Url
Dataset
McQuilliam S, Olthof S, Guerin C. 2024. Data - Effects of Floater and Bounce Players on the Locomotor Demands of Small-Sided Games in Football. DOI Public Url
Conference publication
Tureen TAHMEED, Olthof SBH. 2022. “Estimated Player Impact” (EPI): Quantifying the effects of individual players on football (soccer) actions using hierarchical statistical models StatsBomb Conference Proceedings, StatsBomb Conference 2022 Author Url Publisher Url Public Url
Olthof SBH, Frencken WGP, Lemmink KAPM. 2016. Small-Sided Games: An Optimal Training Tool to Represent Tactical Match Demands in Elite-Standard Youth Soccer Players? RESEARCH QUARTERLY FOR EXERCISE AND SPORT, 87 :S48-S48 Author Url
Other invited event:
Saarbrücken, Germany, Chairing and presenting at the invited session: Football tactics through the lens of data and technology. Presentation was titled: From data to team dynamics: Evaluating team tactical behaviour in small-sided games, German Exercise Science and Training Conference 2025, https://gest.uni-saarland.de/. 2025
Dagstuhl, Germany, A Dagstuhl Seminar (24081) to develop a computational understanding of strategy and tactics in sport. An interdisciplinary setting with researchers and practitioners from Machine Learning, Statistics, and Sports. The seminar was organized around the themes "Discovery", "Evaluation", and "Communication" https://doi.org/10.4230/DagRep.14.2.164, Dagstuhl Seminar: Computational Approaches to Strategy and Tactics in Sports. 2024
De Grolsch Veste, FC Twente stadium, Enschede, the Netherlands, https://www.pbh.nl/event/masterclass-voetbaldata-performance-innovatie/, Masterclass Football Data, Performance and Innovation. 2024
Online / Universidade de Évora, A seminar to explore the importance of technology in high performance sport with workshops with multidisciplinary, differentiated approaches and concerned with providing applied answers to real problems., International seminar on technology in sport (Seminário Internacional de Tecnologia no Desporto). 2023
Online (https://footballdna.co.uk/features/different-pitch-sizes-shapes-for-your-football-sessions/), In this podcast video we explore Using Different Pitch Sizes & Shapes For Your Football Coaching Sessions., Football DNA podcast. 2022
Online, Top professionals and researchers presented their latest research works in the field of Football Science., Sportrail Football Science Conference 2021. 2021
Online, Speaker and panel member in the discussion on the topic "Small-Sided Games: Optimum Pitch Sizes for Technical and Physical Development", Football Innovation Summit: Sunday Session. 2020
External PGR examinations performed:
PhD, KU Leuven, Belgium, Soccer Through the Lens of Artificial Intelligence: Analyzing Actions and Tactics by Learning and Reasoning. 2025
PhD, Massey University, Albany, New Zealand, Quantifying Sprint Demands in Soccer Training: Insights from Individualised Analysis of Soccer-Specific Exercises and Small-Sided Games. 2024
Research Grants Awarded:
Duration of research project: 3 months, Grant value (£): 4,500, New Balance, Mark Lake, Elite Player Performance Analysis (Global Football). 2024
Duration of research project: 12 months, Grant value (£): 20,000, Mersey School of Endoscopy, Laura Swettenham, Joe Causer, Sigrid Olthof, Paul O'Toole, Mel Rankin, Investigating Psychological Safety in Colonoscopy training. 2024
External committees:
World Congress on Science and Football, Chair, International Steering Committee on Science and Football. 2023
World Congress on Science and Football, Member, International Steering Committee on Science and Football. 2023
Conference presentation:
Invited session, Groningen, the Netherlands, World Congress on Science and Football 2023, Team tactical behaviour in small-sided games. 2023
Oral presentation, Groningen, the Netherlands, World Congress on Science and Football 2023, Team tactical behaviour varies across phases of professional football match. 2023
Oral presentation, Groningen, the Netherlands, World Congress on Science and Football, The effect of training objectives on the game format and physical demands in small-sided games. 2023
Oral presentation, Coimbra, Portugal, World Congress on Science and Soccer, Small, medium and large-sided games: the effect of pitch dimensions and team size on acceleration demands in training. 2022
Oral presentation, Virtual, European College of Sport Science (ECSS) congress, Physical Workload Intensities of NCAA D-I American Football Players on Offense vs. Defense During Practical Drills. 2021
Oral presentation, 25th Conference of the European College of Sport Science (ECSS), Seasonal Variation of the Acceleration-Deceleration (AD) Ratio by Position in Basketball. 2020
Oral presentation, 25th Conference of the European College of Sport Science (ECSS), The effect of playing home or away on game demands in NCAA Division-I male basketball players. 2020
Seminar, Oak Brook, IL, USA, 47th Midwest Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (MWACSM), Sport-specific and wearable technology to enhance training, recovery and sport performance. 2019
Oral presentation, Groningen, the Netherlands, 3rd Science and Engineering Conference on Sports Innovations (SECSI), Physical performance in small-sided games and official matches. 2018
Oral presentation, Rennes, France, 5th World Conference on Science and Soccer (WCSS), The effect of match-derived relative pitch area in 5-a-side games on team tactical performance in under-19 talented soccer players. 2017
Poster presentation, Rennes, France, 5th World Conference on Science and Soccer (WCSS), Age-related team-tactical differences in full-sized matches. 2017
Oral presentation, Cologne, Germany, 6th International Teaching Games for Understanding Conference (TGfU), Small-sided games: an optimal training tool to represent tactical match demands in elite-standard youth soccer players?. 2016
Oral presentation, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, 1st Science and Engineering Conference on Sports Innovations (SECSI), Tactical team performance in elite-standard youth soccer during small-sided games. 2016
Oral presentation, Copenhagen, Denmark, 8th World Conference on Science & Football (WCSF), Attacking and defending team behaviour in 8v8 and 11v11. 2015
Oral presentation, Copenhagen, Denmark, 8th World Conference on Science & Football (WCSF), Team dynamics during transition moments in small-sided soccer games. 2015
Oral presentation, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, 19th Conference of the European College of Sport Science (ECSS), Standardized small-sided games evoke different physiological responses in elite-standard youth soccer players. 2014
Poster presentation, Groningen, the Netherlands, 11th Groningen Sports Medicine Symposium, Heart rate recovery during the Interval Shuttle Run Test in talented soccer players. 2013
Poster presentation, Ghent, Belgium, 3rd World Conference on Science and Soccer (WCSS), Pass-options in elite soccer. 2012
Teaching qualification:
University Teaching Qualification for Higher Education. 2019
Award:
World Conference on Science and Soccer, Young Investigator Award, https://wcss-rennes2017.sciencesconf.org/resource/page/id/26. 2017