Science & Football

Key Points
Science is playing a greater role in football than ever before

The England squad has been using new training techniques to boost their power

In a penalty shoot-out, keepers can spot important clues about which way to dive

'Bending it like Beckham' is a straightforward matter of physics

Despite the tears and frustrations, watching the World Cup is good for your health

You've always suspected it - and it's true – the referee is blind

Football science
There's more money in football than ever before. And this has had one important consequence - football science is now big business. It's making an impact on everything from training regimes to the design of the ball.

Are you a natural footballer?
Good footballers must have something in their genes. Researchers have discovered a link between the length of a footballer's ring finger and their ability as a player.They measured the difference in length between the ring and index fingers of top players. Players whose ring fingers were longer compared to their index fingers were more likely to be elite players. Some of the players found to have long ring fingers are Bryan Robson, Ossie Ardiles, Glenn Hoddle, Sir Stanley Matthews and Gazza.

There might be a sensible explanation for this finding. When a male foetus is between eight and twelve weeks old, certain parts of his body become sensitive to the hormone testosterone. The heart, lungs and brain are all affected and so are the fingers.

It seems that fingers, although they don't help a footballer in any major way, are an indicator of how much testosterone they received at this crucial stage of development. This might increase their strength and spatial awareness.

Both are useful qualities, but what every footballer needs on top of that is rigorous training.

Science & Football