Leaders’ perceptions of performance support team effectiveness in elite sport

Performance support teams are central to optimising athlete health, wellbeing, and performance in elite sport, yet team effectiveness depends on more than the aggregation of specialist expertise. Despite increasing attention on leadership in sport, limited research has examined how leaders facilitate team effectiveness within performance support teams. The purpose of this study was to examine performance support team leaders’ perceptions on facilitating team effectiveness in elite sport. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with leaders of performance support teams across elite sport organisations, including the English Premier League, Premiership rugby, Netball Super League, Olympic sports, and international football, cricket, and netball. Three themes were generated to explain how leaders contribute to performance support team effectiveness. Creating Alignment in Complex Performance Environments captured how leaders establish shared direction, align people and resources, and structure collaboration around performance needs. Leading Through Relationships reflected how leaders prioritise the person ahead of the practitioner, build trust that enables challenge, and foster cohesion amongst team members. Building and Mobilising Expertise Across the Team described how leaders drew on experience to inform decisions, recruit complementary perspectives and develop ownership and autonomy. Together, these findings position leadership in performance support teams as a relational, context-sensitive, and system-shaping practice, with practical implications for leadership development, recruitment, team design, and team effectiveness.