Physical performance differences across competitive stages in brazilian women’s football : a capacity-specific analysis from under-14 to professional players

Abstract

Physical performance may vary across competitive categories in women’s football, but the capacities distinguishing consecutive stages remain unclear. This cross-sectional study compared under-14 (U14), under-16 (U16), under-18 (U18), and professional Brazilian female outfield players and identified adjacent-stage differences. Overall, 119 female outfield players from two Brazilian football clubs, with U14 and U16 players recruited from one club and U18 and professional players from both clubs, completed the squat jump, countermovement jump, 20 m sprint, 20 m change-of-direction test (COD-20m), and YoYo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 1. Analyses included Welch’s ANOVA, multivariate analysis, Games–Howell tests, and adjacent-stage comparisons with Holm adjustment. The multivariate physical-performance profile differed in all three adjacent-stage comparisons (Holm-adjusted p ≤ 0.043). U16 covered 491.82 m more than U14 in the Yo-Yo test (adjusted p = 0.012), although this comparison was limited to players from one club. U18 exceeded U16 in squat jump (3.10 cm; adjusted p = 0.004) and countermovement jump (3.87 cm; adjusted p = 0.002). Professionals exceeded U18 in squat jump (2.89 cm; adjusted p = 0.008), countermovement jump (2.93 cm; adjusted p = 0.011), and COD-20m (−0.24 s; adjusted p < 0.001). These category- and capacity-specific differences support category-specific interpretation and may help practitioners prioritize relevant capacities in monitoring and physical preparation rather than applying uniform benchmarks.