What is a Performance Analyst? Roles, Tools and Career Path

As the global sports industry expands, so too does the range of available roles.

This can be on the business side, for instance a partnership manager, on the media side, such as a public relations professional, or on the sporting side.

An increasingly recognised position in this category is that of the performance analyst. However, many still have questions around the role.

‘How important are performance analysts in sport?’

‘What tools do performance analysts use?’

‘What does a performance analyst actually do?’

All valid questions, which this article will seek to answer.

The Rise of Analytics in Sport

Historically, the responsibility of analysing player performance has been up to a team’s head coach. They would watch a game, form their overarching opinion on who played well and who didn’t, and make their decisions from there.

However, as technology evolved, so too did the methods of analysing performances. Singular aspects of player performances started to be tracked and quantified. 

This was possible across a range of sports, the percentage of passes a footballer completed, the number of metres a rugby player ran post-contact, or the amount of second serve return points a tennis player won. 

In the 1990s, these underlying statistics started to inform decisions on player recruitment, with the term ‘Moneyball’ coined around the approach of baseball coach Billy Beane at the Oakland Athletics.

Brentford and former FC Midtjylland owner Matthew Benham is a figure in football known for his data-driven approach, with many research studies highlighting the effectiveness of the performance analysts who work in environments like these.

The Role of a Performance Analyst

According to the Professional Football Scouts Association, the role of a performance analyst is to use data science and technological tools to “evaluate the performance of players objectively.”

Their responsibilities can range from filming and analysing games, developing tailor-made training programs for each athlete, or producing opposition reports.

GIS student Connor Bagby has spent time as an analyst with leading Jamaican Premier League (JPL) side, Mount Pleasant Football Academy, who recently won the CONCACAF Caribbean Cup.

Connor told GIS about his responsibilities as an analyst, saying: “Initially, my role was to 

watch and review opposition analysis, before later being tasked with analysing MPFA performance relative to the coaches demands.”

“Examples of this included examining final third entries, areas of the pitch where 

possession was gained/lost, and offensive/defensive shape in and out of possession.”

“We utilised live coding to analyse their matches in real-time, directly informing the coach of match statistics and focus areas.”

What Tools Do Performance Analysts Use?

To code and analyse a game, there are many tools that performance analysts use.

Examples include In-Play and Hudl, which are video analysis platforms that allow analysts to break down and track every aspect of player performance. Other companies such as Opta Sports collect data, providing analysts, clubs and broadcasters with in-depth analysis and statistics.

How Important are Performance Analysts in Sport?

The sports analytics market value is expected to reach USD 14.8 billion by 2030. It goes without saying that performance analysts are at the heart of it.

But it’s not only clubs that hire performance analysts. Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes employs his own team, an example of their importance. 

“To succeed in football, you have to study as well as play,” the player said on the Brazilian podcast 3 na Área, via The Athletic.

“If I have a little more information than my opponent, even 10 per cent more, I have an advantage over him. That’s why I have my analysis guys.” 

Performance analysts can also support players off the pitch.

Earlier this year, GIS spoke to Jeremy Steele, co-founder of data-driven sports consultancy Analytics FC. In 2021, Kevin De Bruyne signed a contract extension with Manchester City.

However, the negotiations were far from conventional as De Bruyne did not use an agent. Instead, he commissioned Analytics FC to “create a study of every aspect of his contribution to Manchester City, prior to his contract renegotiation with the club.” 

This involved the company’s analysts comparing De Bruyne to other players in Europe and providing an overall report of the value he brought to the club, helping him negotiate his own five-year, £104 million deal.

Without the performance analysts themselves, none of this would have been possible.

How To Become a Performance Analyst in Sport?

If you want to work in the world of performance analysis in sport, education is a great place to start.

At GIS, programmes such as MSc Performance Analysis in Football or MSc Football Coaching & Analysis offer in-depth modules from Football Statistics and Data Analysis to Talent Identification and Recruitment, giving students the expertise to kickstart their careers.

The course leader Connor McGillick, who has experience working in swimming and volleyball, as well as football clubs such as Coventry City and Stoke City, told GIS: “I have learnt the power of supporting the specific coach, head of recruitment or club I worked for. 

“There are various ways to analyse data and video, different key performance indicators can be investigated, and players can be scouted in various ways. Practice needs to effectively support the environment you are working in to have a positive impact.”

“I wanted to teach performance analysis to the next generation of analysts, scouts and other practitioners because I believe in the power of information and how analytical information can support all departments.”

To discover our range of coaching and analysis programmes, explore our course offerings.

Article by Zakaria Anani