Project Details
Description
As part of this study, PMU collaborated with the Red Bull Athlete Performance Center in Thalgau and the U.S.-based company Electronic Caregiver to collect and analyze data from professional soccer players in Austria, to generate new insights into COVID-19 risk factors and preventive measures in elite team sports. The study was motivated by the challenges that contact sports teams have faced since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in safely continuing training and competition. The goal was to design and implement a structured monitoring concept for the Austrian national soccer league.
The study examined the relationship between COVID-19 incidence and mental health among 225 team members and staff from five professional Austrian soccer clubs. A total of 146 professional players from five Austrian Football Bundesliga clubs were monitored over 12 weeks. Subjective health parameters, PCR test results, and data from a geo-tracking app were collected. Simulations were conducted to model the effects of a COVID-19 case under varying reproduction numbers. No COVID-19 infections occurred among the players during the observation period. However, infections in the surrounding environment increased the players’ perceived risk of infection. A rising number of new COVID-19 cases was significantly associated with worsening sleep quality, though not with other proxies of mental health. An increase in active COVID-19 cases was significantly associated with both a higher perceived risk of infection and greater variance in mobility patterns.
The study yields the following conclusions: A structured monitoring concept can facilitate the safe continuation of contact sports during a pandemic. Collaboration among all stakeholders is essential. The adverse association between rising COVID-19 incidence and mental health among professional players and staff was particularly evident in subjectively reported mental health indicators. During an ongoing pandemic, targeted psychological support should be integrated into the daily routines of this population.
The study examined the relationship between COVID-19 incidence and mental health among 225 team members and staff from five professional Austrian soccer clubs. A total of 146 professional players from five Austrian Football Bundesliga clubs were monitored over 12 weeks. Subjective health parameters, PCR test results, and data from a geo-tracking app were collected. Simulations were conducted to model the effects of a COVID-19 case under varying reproduction numbers. No COVID-19 infections occurred among the players during the observation period. However, infections in the surrounding environment increased the players’ perceived risk of infection. A rising number of new COVID-19 cases was significantly associated with worsening sleep quality, though not with other proxies of mental health. An increase in active COVID-19 cases was significantly associated with both a higher perceived risk of infection and greater variance in mobility patterns.
The study yields the following conclusions: A structured monitoring concept can facilitate the safe continuation of contact sports during a pandemic. Collaboration among all stakeholders is essential. The adverse association between rising COVID-19 incidence and mental health among professional players and staff was particularly evident in subjectively reported mental health indicators. During an ongoing pandemic, targeted psychological support should be integrated into the daily routines of this population.
| Acronym | Ö-BL |
|---|---|
| Status | Finished |
| Effective start/end date | 15/05/20 → 15/08/20 |
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