External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams?

Giacomo Cofano; Nicola Trotta; Luigi Armiento; Rosario D'onofrio; Italo Sannicandro

doi:10.54141/psbd.1891393

External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams?

Abstract

Soccer performance has gained increasing interest in recent years due to technological advancements. GPS technology is extensively used within professional contexts to quantify external load and support evidence-based training prescription for top-level players. The aim of this study was to compare external load demands among teams finishing in different league positions and to provide a descriptive analysis highlighting the performance profile in the Italian Serie A. 380 official matches from the 2024/2025 Italian Serie A season were analyzed, including data from 401 professional soccer players. The main findings indicate that most external load variables did not differ significantly between ranking groups, with the exception of effective playing time. Future research should monitor the same professional league across multiple seasons to better capture how the performance profile evolves.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

The research was approved by the ethical committee of University of Foggia (00012SM/2025–2025-05-25) and conducted in accordance with Declaration of Helsinki

Thanks

The authors declare that no financial support was received for the conduct of this study. The authors thank the technical staff and performance analysts for their assistance in data collection and management.

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Sports Training, Physical Training and Sports

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Giacomo Cofano
0000-0001-9973-1740
Italy

Nicola Trotta ^*
0009-0006-3312-2663
Italy

Luigi Armiento
0009-0003-1178-9596
Italy

Rosario D'onofrio
0000-0002-8995-3072
Italy

Italo Sannicandro
0000-0003-1284-2136
Italy

Early Pub Date

October 12, 2026

Publication Date

-

Submission Date

February 17, 2026

Acceptance Date

August 5, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Number: Advanced Online Publication

DOI

https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1891393

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA89MS87NM

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Cofano, G., Trotta, N., Armiento, L., D’onofrio, R., & Sannicandro, I. (2026). External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams? Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences, Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1891393

AMA

1.Cofano G, Trotta N, Armiento L, D’onofrio R, Sannicandro I. External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams? Pamukkale J Sport Sci. 2026;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.54141/psbd.1891393

Chicago

Cofano, Giacomo, Nicola Trotta, Luigi Armiento, Rosario D’onofrio, and Italo Sannicandro. 2026. “External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams?”. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences, no. Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1891393.

EndNote

Cofano G, Trotta N, Armiento L, D’onofrio R, Sannicandro I (October 12, 2026) External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams? Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences Advanced Online Publication

IEEE

[1]G. Cofano, N. Trotta, L. Armiento, R. D’onofrio, and I. Sannicandro, “External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams?”, Pamukkale J Sport Sci, no. Advanced Online Publication, Oct. 2026, doi: 10.54141/psbd.1891393.

ISNAD

Cofano, Giacomo - Trotta, Nicola - Armiento, Luigi - D’onofrio, Rosario - Sannicandro, Italo. “External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams?”. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences. Advanced Online Publication (October 12, 2026). https://doi.org/10.54141/psbd.1891393.

JAMA

1.Cofano G, Trotta N, Armiento L, D’onofrio R, Sannicandro I. External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams? Pamukkale J Sport Sci. 2026. doi:10.54141/psbd.1891393.

MLA

Cofano, Giacomo, et al. “External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams?”. Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences, no. Advanced Online Publication, Oct. 2026, doi:10.54141/psbd.1891393.

Vancouver

1.Giacomo Cofano, Nicola Trotta, Luigi Armiento, Rosario D’onofrio, Italo Sannicandro. External Load Demands in Italian Serie A: Do Winning Teams Run More Than Relegated Teams? Pamukkale J Sport Sci. 2026 Oct. 12;(Advanced Online Publication). doi:10.54141/psbd.1891393