An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League

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dc.contributor.advisorWatson, Neil
dc.contributor.authorKing, Wesley
dc.date.accessioned2025-11-26T07:01:06Z
dc.date.available2025-11-26T07:01:06Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.date.updated2025-11-26T06:56:36Z
dc.description.abstractAs football becomes increasingly data-driven, the high cost of advanced player analytics threatens to leave resource-limited clubs at a competitive disadvantage, particularly in player scouting. This growing reliance on expensive, granular data under-scores the need for affordable, innovative data solutions. This dissertation seeks to democratize access to player evaluation data for football clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League. This is achieved by developing a cost-effective system that uses models to approximate Statsbomb's proprietary ‘On the ball' player evaluation metric using cheaper, frequency data from Wyscout and FBref. The analysis shows that linear regression models can effectively estimate key components of this metric using basic frequency statistics. The findings are then packaged into a prototype web-based Decision Support System with budget-aware scouting features, showcasing how club scouts and analysts can integrate sophisticated data-driven recruitment strategies into their clubs without incurring prohibitive data costs.
dc.identifier.apacitationKing, W. (2025). <i>An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League</i>. (). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Statistical Sciences. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42338en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationKing, Wesley. <i>"An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League."</i> ., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Statistical Sciences, 2025. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42338en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationKing, W. 2025. An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League. . University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Statistical Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42338en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - King, Wesley AB - As football becomes increasingly data-driven, the high cost of advanced player analytics threatens to leave resource-limited clubs at a competitive disadvantage, particularly in player scouting. This growing reliance on expensive, granular data under-scores the need for affordable, innovative data solutions. This dissertation seeks to democratize access to player evaluation data for football clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League. This is achieved by developing a cost-effective system that uses models to approximate Statsbomb's proprietary ‘On the ball' player evaluation metric using cheaper, frequency data from Wyscout and FBref. The analysis shows that linear regression models can effectively estimate key components of this metric using basic frequency statistics. The findings are then packaged into a prototype web-based Decision Support System with budget-aware scouting features, showcasing how club scouts and analysts can integrate sophisticated data-driven recruitment strategies into their clubs without incurring prohibitive data costs. DA - 2025 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town KW - Clubs KW - South Africa KW - Premier soccer league LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2025 T1 - An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League TI - An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42338 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/42338
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationKing W. An affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League. []. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Statistical Sciences, 2025 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42338en_ZA
dc.language.isoen
dc.language.rfc3066eng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Statistical Sciences
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Science
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subjectClubs
dc.subjectSouth Africa
dc.subjectPremier soccer league
dc.titleAn affordable data solution for player recruitment for clubs in the South African Premier Soccer League
dc.typeThesis / Dissertation
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationlevelMSc
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