Comparing Match-Related Physical Performance Using Arbitrary and Individual Running Speed, Acceleration, and Deceleration Zones in Professional Football Players (Part 1)

Abstract Antenucci, L, Schmidt, C, and Malatesta, D. Comparing match-related physical performance using arbitrary and individual running speed, acceleration, and deceleration zones in professional football players (part 1). J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000–000, 2026—This study aimed to compare match-related physical performance and its match-to-match variability using arbitrary (ARB) and individualized (IND) intensity thresholds for running speed, accelerations (ACC), and decelerations (DEC) in a professional football team. Global navigation satellite system data from an entire Swiss first-division season (30 matches) were analyzed for 14 players. The match-related physical performance was assessed across 4 intensity zones for running speed, ACCs, and DECs: low-speed running, high-speed running (HSR), very high-speed running, sprinting and ACC 1/2/3/4 /DEC 1/2/3/4 . The distance covered and the number of ACCs/DECs in each zone were recorded through 3 thresholds for both ARB (speed: 14.4/19.8/25.2 km·h −1 ; ACCs/DECs: 1.0/2.0/3.0 m·s −2 ) and IND (speed: speed at the second lactate threshold, peak incremental speed, and anaerobic sprint reserve; ACCs/DECs: 25%/50%/75% of maximal ACCs/DECs). Within-player match-to-match variability coefficient of variation was also calculated. Significant differences were found between both methods across all zones ( p ≤ 0.033). Running distances were significantly greater in IND than in ARB for all zones (4.5–110.7%) except HSR (−37.0%). Accelerations/DECs were significantly greater in IND for ACC 1 (74.7%) and DEC 1 (117.9%), but lower for ACC 2/3/4 /DEC 2/3/4 (−16.0% to −96.3%). The number of ACC 4 /DEC 4 was nearly negligible in IND. Coefficients of variation were lower for sprint distance, and greater for ACC 4 /DEC 4 in IND than in ARB. The significant differences between ARB and IND running speed zones suggest that IND method should be used to assess match-related running performance accurately, while ARB method should be used for quantifying the number of ACCs/DECs.