Preseason Football Testing | What Academies Measure Before the Season Starts
Preseason can look simple from the outside. Running, drills, friendly matches, sweat. But in serious academy environments, the clever work happens before the shouting starts. Preseason Football Testing is not there to label a child as “fit” or “not fit”. It should show what the football player is ready for, what needs protection, and what the staff must not ignore.
Why Preseason Football Testing Matters
The problem is not that academies test children. The problem is when parents think every test is a trial. A sprint score, jump score or GPS number is not a verdict on talent.
It is information.
Used properly, testing helps the academy staff decide:
who needs gradual loading,
who is growing fast,
who is carrying fatigue,
who needs strength work,
who needs speed exposure,
who needs medical or physio review.
The best academies do not test to embarrass. They test to plan.
The Measurements That Actually Matter
The most useful preseason measurements usually fall into five groups. Each tells a different story.
Preseason Measurements by Age Group
What Parents Often Misread
A child can test slower because he is in a growth spurt. A child can jump lower because he is fatigued. A child can report low wellness because school, sleep and travel are already draining him.
That is why one score alone is dangerous.
Parents should be careful with these reactions:
“He came fifth, so he is behind.”
“He looks heavy, so he is not working.”
“He was faster last year, so something is wrong.”
“Extra personal training will fix it.”
“The academy is not pushing him enough.”
It looks harmless, until it becomes a pattern. More work is not always the answer. Better-timed work is.
What a Good Academy Does With the Data
Good staff do not collect numbers for decoration. They connect the data to the week’s training plan.
For example:
poor jump score plus high soreness means reduce explosive load,
rapid growth plus knee pain means monitor landing and running volume,
poor repeated sprint score means build conditioning gradually,
high GPS deceleration load means protect the next session,
low sleep score means be careful with intensity.
That is the difference between testing and coaching.
Parent Advice
Ask how maturity status changed speed results, not just who tested fastest.
Track repeated-sprint fatigue because late-session drop-off shapes preseason conditioning groups more accurately.
Use wellness scores to flag poor recovery before extra preseason work is added.
Key Takeaways
Preseason Football Testing should compare growth status before judging physical readiness in academy squads.
GPS load data helps staff separate hard training from harmful accumulated spikes.
Movement screens guide prevention work when asymmetry appears during preseason testing blocks.
References
Keiner, M., Kadlubowski, B., Sander, A., Wirth, K., & Hartmann, H. (2021). Differences in squat jump, linear sprint, and change-of-direction performance among youth soccer players according to competitive level. Sports, 9(11), 149. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports9110149
Teixeira, J. E., Forte, P., Ferraz, R., Leal, M., Ribeiro, J., Silva, A. J., Barbosa, T. M., & Monteiro, A. M. (2022). The association between external training load, perceived exertion and total quality recovery in sub-elite youth football. The Open Sports Sciences Journal, 15, e1875399X2207220.
Thapa, R. K., Lum, D., Moran, J., & Ramirez-Campillo, R. (2021). Effects of complex training on sprint, jump, and change of direction ability of soccer players: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 627869. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.627869
Towlson, C., Salter, J., Ade, J. D., Enright, K., Harper, L. D., Page, R. M., & Malone, J. J. (2021). Maturity-associated considerations for training load, injury risk, and physical performance in youth soccer: One size does not fit all. Journal of Sport and Health Science, 10(4), 403-412. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2020.09.003
