Peer-reviewed article
Scoreless but still scoring: A population-based observational study of removing league tables and playoffs in children's soccer.
Wagnsson S, Lundkvist E ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined whether removing league tables and playoffs from children's soccer affected how many children participated. Using twelve years of data from over 30,000 children aged 7-12, researchers found no significant change in participation rates after the policy change in 2017. Girls' participation remained stable throughout, while boys showed an upward trend that continued regardless of the rule change. The findings suggest that league standings and playoffs are not a major factor in whether children choose to play organized soccer.
Key points
- No significant changes in participation rates were found after removing league tables and playoffs in 2017
- Girls' participation remained stable across the entire twelve-year study period
- Boys showed a pre-existing upward trend in participation that persisted after the policy change
- Data covered over 30,000 participants across twelve years (excluding COVID-19 years)
- Broader contextual factors and existing trends appear more influential than competitive scoring structures
Limitations
The study does not reveal which broader contextual factors are actually driving participation trends, nor does it assess subjective outcomes like children's enjoyment, motivation, or perceived pressure. The country or countries where this study was conducted are not specified in the provided text.
Abstract
The removal of league standings and playoffs (LSPO) in children's sports has sparked debate. Proponents argue it reduces performance pressure and supports long-term participation, while critics claim it may diminish motivation and enjoyment. Despite this, limited research has quantitatively assessed LSPO's impact on participation. This study examines whether removing LSPO was associated with participation in school-class football among children aged 7-12. Using a natural experiment design, we analyzed registry data spanning twelve years (excluding COVID-19 years), covering over 30,000 participants. Participation trends before and after the 2017 policy change were analyzed using GLMs and segmented regression, by gender and population proportion. Results revealed no significant level or trend changes in participation rates relative to the population after the removal of the LSPO. Girls' participation was stable across the study period, while boys showed a pre-existing upward trend that persisted after the rule change. These findings suggest that LSPO may not be a key factor associated with participation. Instead, existing trends and broader contextual factors likely play a more central role in shaping children's engagement in sport.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Removal of league tables and playoffs from school-class football
- Population
- Children aged 7-12 participating in school-class football, over 30,000 participants tracked
Key finding
No significant level change in participation rates after removal of league tables and playoffs