Physical Demands during an Elite Female Soccer Game: Importance of Training Status

Time-motion analysis and HR recordings were performed on 14 elite female soccer players during competitive matches. In addition, the players carried out a laboratory treadmill test and the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test.

The total distance covered during a game was 10.3 km (range: 9.7-11.3) with high-intensity running (HIR) accounting for 1.31 km (0.71-1.70). HIR was performed 125 times (72-159) for 2.3 s (2.0-2.4) on average. The average and peak HR in a game were 167 beats per minute (bpm) (152-186) and 186 (171-205), respectively, corresponding to 87% (81-93) and 97% (96-100) of HR(max). Maximal pulmonary oxygen uptake (VO2max) was 49.4 mL.min(-1).kg(-1) (43.4-56.8), and incremental treadmill test (ITT) performance was 4.49 min (3.38-5.17). The Yo-Yo test performance was 1379 m (600-1960). The total distance covered during match play did not correlate with VO2max or ITT performance but correlated with the Yo-Yo test result (r = 0.56, P