How does playing football affect players' behavior during matches?

Abstract

Football is a sport rich in components and content that provide enjoyment, entertainment, and excitement for both players and fans. However, the violence and riots that have accompanied it since its inception to the present day raise numerous questions about their causes and the complex, multifaceted motives behind them, as numerous as the active elements involved. Beyond all these elements surrounding the sport, our study focused on its primary source: the activity itself. While its morpho-functional impact is evident, its effect on player behavior remains the central ambiguity around which our research problem revolves. To this end, we employed a descriptive methodology, which aligns with the nature of our research, to facilitate this survey study. We utilized questionnaires and observation as research tools for a sample that included football players from the first and second national divisions. After gathering various data from the players' responses to the questionnaire—which covered three main axes, including the players' motivation for playing football, the impact of the result on them, their knowledge of the rules of football, and the effect of different aspects of preparation on their behavior—and from the data included in the field observation form of the players' behavior under different result conditions (draw, win, or loss), the statistical data showed that the behavior of football players is influenced by the outcome of matches due to the importance of the result and its connection to several other active elements in the sport. The results also revealed a lack of knowledge among football players regarding the rules of the sport, and that this ignorance leads to negative behavior during matches through actions that do not conform to the established rules governing how the game is played. It also became clear that each type of preparation in football has its role and impact on the players' behavior on the field; the effect of physical preparation differs from that of technical, tactical, psychological, or theoretical preparation. Therefore, in order for football to become a true source of nobility and a genuine wellspring of purity, it must be cleansed of the tragedies that plague it. This can only be achieved by studying its various aspects one by one to purify them in service of its noble goals.