Advancing Cognitive Assessment and Training in Professional Youth Football Through Immersive Football-Specific Technology

Chang, W (2026) Advancing Cognitive Assessment and Training in Professional Youth Football Through Immersive Football-Specific Technology. Doctoral thesis, Liverpool John Moores University.

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Abstract

The increasing perceptual and cognitive demands of modern football have led to growing interest in technologies designed to assess and train the underlying mechanisms of decision-making processes within applied environments. Among these tools, football-specific assessment or training technologies typically refer to systems that attempt to integrate either generic or sport-specific perceptual stimuli with corresponding motor responses (Beavan, 2019), thereby embedding cognitive processing within perception–action coupled tasks. These approaches aim to preserve key characteristics of performance environments while maintaining experimental control. However, despite their adoption in professional settings, the methodological validity and applied utility of such systems remain insufficiently understood. This thesis therefore aimed to evaluate the SoccerBot360 (SB360), an immersive football-specific cognitive-motor assessment and training device, within an English professional youth academy context.

The first part of the thesis examined the SB360 as an assessment tool (Chapters 3 and 4). Cross-sectional findings from the U12–U21 academy players demonstrated that standardised SB360 cognitive-motor performance metrics exhibited differential sensitivity to developmental and contextual factors. Response time, particularly in tasks with consistent overt motor execution (i.e., kicking), showed systematic associations with chronological age and biological maturation, suggesting sensitivity to developmental characteristics. In contrast, executive-control and binary correctness (i.e., decisional accuracy and error-based) measures from cognitive tasks demonstrated limited differentiation across age groups but were more strongly associated with subjective workload, reflecting sensitivity to perceived cognitive demands and transient performance states. Collectively, findings indicated that SB360 performance is not solely reflective of stable cognitive ability but emerges from an interaction between cognitive task demands and motor-execution requirements.

The second part of the thesis evaluated the SB360 training protocols (Chapter 5). A longitudinal study employing a cross-over design examined a standardised 6-week training intervention in U13–U15 academy players. Results demonstrated improvements in cognitive-motor performance across both intervention and control conditions, with no significant between-group differences or consistent time-by-group interaction effects across testing points. At an individual level, considerable variability in response to the intervention was observed, with some players demonstrating performance improvements while others showed minimal or inconsistent changes. These findings highlight the importance of individualisation in cognitive training interventions, as standardised approaches may not account for differences in player needs, baseline abilities, or responsiveness to training stimuli. Collectively, findings suggest that observed group-level improvements were primarily attributable to familiarisation and repeated task exposure rather than training-specific cognitive adaptations. In addition, the relatively low training dosage and limited alignment between training and assessment tasks may have constrained the potential for transfer effects.

Overall, this thesis provides the first comprehensive applied evaluation of an integrated football-specific cognitive-motor system within a professional academy. While the SB360 demonstrates practical feasibility and value as a structured training and monitoring environment, its assessment and training outcomes require careful interpretation. Importantly, the findings highlight that the effectiveness of such technologies is contingent upon task design, sufficient familiarisation, appropriate training dosage, and the need for individualised implementation within player development programmes. This work also critically examines the definition and appropriateness of the term football-specific in relation to emerging cognitive testing and training technologies. Collectively, the thesis offers broader transferable insights for the development, evaluation, and applied integration of cognitive assessment and training systems in applied environments.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	cognitive skills; football (soccer); intervention; motor skills; representativeness; technology; testing
Subjects:	Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA76 Computer software R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC1200 Sports Medicine G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports > GV711 Coaching G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports
Divisions:	Sport and Exercise Sciences
Date of acceptance:	20 August 2026
Date of first compliant Open Access:	4 September 2026
Date Deposited:	04 Sep 2026 13:21
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2026 13:21
Supervisors:	McRobert, A, Causer, J, Ford, PR, Fernandez-Navarro, J, Andrew, M and Iga, J
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/29166

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