Jesse Davis
@jessejdavis.bsky.social
Professor @ KU Leuven researching AI, machine learning, and sports. Co founder of runeasi
The newsletter may be a day late, but it's here. In this edition of The Post-Match Report, alongside the updates, we're looking at momentum (with a more level-headed approach this time). Where does it come from? What does it mean? Who did it first??
July 23: Momentum
Plus some fun research papers
post-match-report.leaflet.pub
In the last chapter of her PhD thesis Lotte Bransen looked at penalty kicks. Several interesting things emerged. A simulation study indicated slightly higher save percentage if the goalkeeper did not always align directly in the center of the goal. 1/5
With a few days' reflection, my post-mortem on the United States men's national team at the 2026 World Cup. @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/football/202...
The US delivered their best modern World Cup performance – and also let themselves down
Mauricio Pochettino’s team delivered several thrilling performances on home soil. The way it ended was somewhat less exhilarating
theguardian.com
🥾⚽️ As noted by, e.g., @zonal-marking.bsky.social a strange trend of the 2026 World Cup is teams deliberately booting the ball out of play from kick-off. With the @royalbelgianfa.bsky.social we looked into this in 2024 for the @statsbomb.com conference.
I profiled U.S. men's national team starting goalkeeper Matt Freese, a pro athlete and Harvard grad who is somehow the underachiever in his remarkable family. Spoke to him and his family on their dynamics and Matt convincing his late, famous neurosurgeon father that soccer was worthy. @espn.com
The education of USMNT goalkeeper (and Harvard grad) Matt Freese
The starting USMNT goalkeeper has an economics degree from Harvard. In his remarkable family, that makes him the underachiever.
espn.com
⚽➡️🧠 It’s a only small step from soccer analytics to Parkinson’s research… Over the past years, I collaborated on a project to improve how we understand Parkinson’s disease. It’s now published in Nature Communications: www.nature.com/articles/s41... Curious how soccer fits into this? Read on 👇
⚽ 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐮𝐰𝐝 𝐧𝐚𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐤 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠? Onlangs mocht ik voor de Universiteit van Vlaanderen een korte podcast opnemen, waarin ik (probeerde) om een paar van onze projecten binnen voetbalanalytics. www.universiteitvanvlaanderen.be/podcast/mess...
Waarom is Messi nóg beter dan we dachten? :: Universiteit van Vlaanderen
Zelfs artificiële intelligentie blijkt Lionel Messi te onderschatten. Hoe kan dat? Computerwetenschapper Jesse Davis (KU Leuven) onderzoekt hoe AI voetbal analyseert en waar die systemen nog fouten ma...
universiteitvanvlaanderen.be
Our 2026 World Cup predictions are live! 🔮 🇪🇸 Spain (24%) is the clear favourite, followed by 🇦🇷 Argentina (17%), 🇫🇷 France (11%), 🏴 England (7%) and 🇧🇷 Brazil (5%). Explore every team’s path to the final in our interactive 👇 w/ @jessejdavis.bsky.social dtai.cs.kuleuven.be/sports/world...
Predicting the 2026 World Cup: Can Anyone Stop Spain?
Qatar 2022 saw Messi finally claim his World Cup trophy in an epic final against France. This year’s tournament is the first 48‑team World…
dtai.cs.kuleuven.be
I am proud to be taking up a new role at Club Brugge as Director of Football Intelligence. 💙🖤 My focus will be on helping make the sporting side of the club even more evidence-based. Grateful for the continued trust and excited for the next chapter at the club!
What if you could simply “prompt” a model with a few shots and get accurate xG predictions? #TabPFN is making waves on academic benchmarks. We tested how it handles a real-world sports analytics problem. w/ Timo Martens & @jessejdavis.bsky.social dtai.cs.kuleuven.be/sports/blog/...
Tabular Foundation Models for xG: Can TabPFN Score Without Training?
For years, the answer to “what’s the best model for expected goals (xG)?” has been boringly consistent: a carefully tuned XGBoost model…
dtai.cs.kuleuven.be
As this World Cup assaults the fans' wallets from all angles, a few host cities are finding workarounds and ways of pushing back against the greed. Column @theguardian.com
A 2026 World Cup that doesn’t rip off fans? Some cities are showing that it’s possible
Philadelphia, Kansas City and Atlanta are among the hosts showing that price-gouging at thus summer’s tournament is, ultimately, a choice
theguardian.com
I'm going to my local bookstore tomorrow to sign copies of The Long Game before it releases on Tuesday. If you'd like a copy with my signature and some kind of message in there, get those orders in today! splitrockbooks.com/book/9780593...
The Long Game: U.S. Men's Soccer and Its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts (Signed)
The Long Game: U.S. Men's Soccer and Its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts (Signed)
splitrockbooks.com
my daughter's football has been nominated for an award. Please consider voting for them by choosing * "Vlaams Brabant" as the Provincie * "Football Girls Leuven" as the Club www.hln.be/leuven/kijk-...
KIJK. Op bezoek bij Football GIRLS Leuven, een van de finalisten van HLN Gouden Jeugdclub
Meer dan 175 jeugdclubs schreven zich in voor de HLN Gouden Jeugdclub, en daar blijven nu nog maar 25 finalisten van over. Een daarvan is <a href="https://www.hln.be/article/~a7d86f48" target="_blank"...
hln.be
It's the weekend in some time zones, go follow some soccer nerds
This is a reminder that you can still register for our #socceranalytics symposium. We have a great set of speakers! www.kuleuven.be/liss/events/...
LISS Football Analytics Symposium
On the evening of 23 April 2026, LISS and the DTAI Sports Analytics Lab will host the Football Analytics Symposium. During this symposium, international speakers will share insights on the use of mach...
kuleuven.be
Fortunes at the World Cup are largely dictated by the timing of primes and injuries and form. After months of concern, the United States men's national team suddenly find itself in a very good spot with all three. There are 107 days to go until the U.S. plays Paraguay. Column @theguardian.com
Mauricio Pochettino suddenly has a glut of USMNT options as the World Cup looms
Timing and luck often dictate a team’s success at tournaments. And the co-hosts have players coming into form at just the right time
theguardian.com
⚽Call for Abstracts ⚽ The abstract submission for the Leuven Institute of Sport Science’s #FootballAnalytics Symposium closes this Thursday, Feb 26 @ 17:00 CET The symposium is on April 23rd. Speakers include @unravelsports.bsky.social and Pascal Bauer (DfB) www.kuleuven.be/liss/events/...
KU Leuven Institute of Sports Science
The KU Leuven Institute of Sports Science is an interdisciplinary network of KU Leuven researchers committed to enhancing sports performance and its broader societal impact.
kuleuven.be
We’re recruiting for a Data Engineer to join our Research team at Liverpool FC. In my (perhaps biased) view, it’s a great opportunity to join an excellent team, work at the forefront of sports analytics, and have a tangible impact. www.linkedin.com/posts/conorq...
New Vacancy - Data Engineer I am excited to share we are recruiting for a Data Engineer to join our Research team at Liverpool Football Club - this is a fantastic opportunity for someone to be a… | ...
New Vacancy - Data Engineer I am excited to share we are recruiting for a Data Engineer to join our Research team at Liverpool Football Club - this is a fantastic opportunity for someone to be a par...
linkedin.com
I'm thrilled that our spinoff Runeasi has closed an investment round and secured €1 million in new funding! This will help us in our quest to make the world run better! trends.knack.be/ondernemen/a...
The 2026 World Cup will be inaccessible to many, whether financially or geographically. But the tournament's unprecedented vastness will also give it an enormous footprint, a chance to fashion a kind of shadow World Cup out of the tournament's orbit. To still leave a legacy. Column @theguardian.com
The World Cup is out of reach for many. The hope lies outside the stadiums | Leander Schaerlaeckens
The opportunity for this tournament’s legacy is in the fan fests, camps and tune-ups accessible to more than the lucky few
theguardian.com
⚽Event Announcement⚽ Leuven Institute of Sport Science’s #FootballAnalytics Symposium will take place on April 23! Current invited speakers are Prof. Pascal Bauer (DFB, USaarland) and @unravelsports.bsky.social Abstract submission closes on Feb 26 @ 17:00 CET www.kuleuven.be/liss/events/...
LISS Football Analytics Symposium
On the evening of 23 April 2026, LISS and the DTAI Sports Analytics Lab will host the Football Analytics Symposium. During this symposium, international speakers will share insights on the use of mach...
kuleuven.be
Can we measure the ability to block dangerous passes in soccer? ⛔️⚽️ We recently presented our latest research paper "Quantifying Off-Ball Defensive Impact through Cover Shadows" at the Hudl Performance Insights 2025 Conference: 📺 youtu.be/kf6far1Zst8?... 📝 static.hudl.com/craft/perfor...
