The global increase in viewership of and participation in women’s football means that, to continue with this growth, we need to appreciate the specific scientific and health issues that determine successful performance for women. The Handbook of Women’s Football provides a thorough, yet straightforward and accessible, analysis of the key physiological, biomechanical and psychological issues that can be applied to achieve footballing development and success as a woman.
A key feature of the book is that each chapter is co-written by a scholar and a practitioner or player (e.g., coach, footballer), so that scientific principles and research are translated clearly into practice.
The Handbook of Women’s Football is essential reading for anyone who is involved with women’s football, including footballers themselves, as well as strength and conditioning coaches, athletic trainers, physiotherapists, medics, nutritionists, sport psychologists, sports scientists, coaches, coach developers, technical directors, general managers, governing body personnel and club owners, from grassroots to elite level. The book is also invaluable to students and academics in sport and exercise, who are studying this topic.
The core message of the book is about how we can develop elite women footballers through putting into practice cutting-edge, evidence-based, scientific information.
Aims
The book is about how the latest scientific knowledge can be applied to achieve excellence in performance in women footballers.
The main themes are as follows:
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- Knowledge: What science is known already about women footballers?
- Application: How is this knowledge applied in a practical setting?
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The objectives are, therefore, as follows:
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- To provide a clear, yet thorough, analysis of the key scientific issues pertinent to women footballers that will enable success
- To provide case studies, examples, and practical guidance on how to implement scientific principles and knowledge in women’s football.
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We will not be focusing on the struggles in terms of gender inequality that female football players might encounter that typifies the literature in this area, but instead will emphasise the positive application of issues specific to women using up-to-date scientific evidence in this domain.
Suggested themes include (but not limited to):
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- Global context and organisation of women’s football
- Physiological determinants and match demands of women’s football
- Nutritional needs of women footballers
- The menstrual cycle and hormone-based contraception in women footballers
- Disordered eating, body image and the FAT/RED-S in women’s football
- Injury prevalence, prevention and rehabilitation in women’s football: A multi-disciplinary approach
- Recovery from training for women footballers
- Concussion and head injuries in women’s’ football
- Breast health for women footballers
- Pregnancy and motherhood in women footballers
- Psychological skills and approaches in women’s football
- Talent identification in women’s football
- Player development in women’s football / developing coaches to develop world-class footballers in the women’s game
- Strategic development of women footballers & the future
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Chapters/Deadlines
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- Chapters should be 4000 words in length including references, tables, graphs, etc.
- Chapter interest expression/abstract submission by 30th September 2021
- Chapters confirmed by 29th October 2021
- Chapter 1st draft submission deadline, 29th April 2022
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If you are interested in contributing to this Handbook, please get in touch with us for further information and/or please send us an abstract (350 words max.) of your proposed chapter by 30th September 2021.
In your abstract, please identify which theme you wish to write about. Detail who you will be co-authoring your chapter with and try to ensure that authors are diverse in terms of country of origin.
We look forward to hearing from potential contributors!
Editors’ contact info
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- Jacky Forsyth, j.j.forsyth@staffs.ac.uk
- Claire-Marie Roberts, cmroberts@premierleague.com
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