Where football meets mathematics

Where exactly does football meet mathematics. When and how the biggest names in football apply their knowledge of mathematics to the game.

Diagonal system of control

The diagonal system of control(DSC) is the main system used by the referees for positioning on the football field.

They might not realize it, but football player are very skilled mathematicians, according to the survey of expert from the University of Bath. Dr. Ken Bray from the University of Bath has spent a lot of time analyzing the best players in the world to conclude that 30% of them have an intuitive understanding of mathematics and particularly geometry.

The mathematics in the football strategy “tiki-taka”

The football tactics "tiki-taka" is a kind of strategy in which numerous short passes are completed by the team, a great space of the terrain is being covered and the ball possession is very high. La liga is known to be the mother place of this strategy. We can clearly see that FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team apply this tactics and have mastered it to perfection. The father of this play style in football is considered to be Johan Cruyff, who applied it mainly as a coach of Barcelona.

Ottmar Hitzfeld – the math teacher who rarely mistakes in football

"I hope that I know well the basics of math in football and try to apply them” - Ottmar Hitzfeld as coach of Bayern Munich in 2007.

The “Delap special” – the math in a throw-in.

Scientists of the University of Brunel have estimated optimal angle at which player should complete a throw-in. It is 30 degrees to the horizontal. The two scientists made a link between football and mathematics with a video simulation of the player who throws the ball at an angle from 10 to 60 degrees. Then using biomechanical software they studied the speed and direction of the ball motion in all cases. Using equations that describe the flight of a spherical object, they calculated that the optimum angle of a throw must be 30 degrees. Thrown at this angle the ball has the best chance to fly all the way to the box and give maximum chance for the players to score. The ball can even reach further with a lower initial angle if thrown so that the movement is in reverse spins.

Dennis Bergkamp`s mathematical goals

Math is all around us – at our works, homes and definitely in the sports and football predictions.

Frequently we find different connections between math and football, which are used by this game`s greatest specialists. Some of them are basics of the football predictions posted on this website.

Elderly football fans still remember the Dutchman Dennis Bergkamp and his masterpiece goals. Sports commentators describe him as a genius, who mastered the football game to perfection and possessing extremely accurate shot, but what is he saying about himself.

“When I played in Holland I always tried to hit the ball over the goalkeeper. People always questioned me about this. Why would I want to humiliate the goalkeeper or to demonstrate arrogance? But I always explain: When the goalkeeper leaves his post he makes the angle to it less but opens the space above it. What I do isn`t a show, it is mathematics.”