@article {1470,
	title = {Explaining the difference between men{\textquoteright}s and women{\textquoteright}s football},
	journal = {PLOS ONE},
	volume = {16},
	year = {2021},
	month = {Apr-08-2021},
	pages = {e0255407},
	abstract = {Women{\textquoteright}s football is gaining supporters and practitioners worldwide, raising questions about what the differences are with men{\textquoteright}s football. While the two sports are often compared based on the players{\textquoteright} physical attributes, we analyze the spatio-temporal events during matches in the last World Cups to compare male and female teams based on their technical performance. We train an artificial intelligence model to recognize if a team is male or female based on variables that describe a match{\textquoteright}s playing intensity, accuracy, and performance quality. Our model accurately distinguishes between men{\textquoteright}s and women{\textquoteright}s football, revealing crucial technical differences, which we investigate through the extraction of explanations from the classifier{\textquoteright}s decisions. The differences between men{\textquoteright}s and women{\textquoteright}s football are rooted in play accuracy, the recovery time of ball possession, and the players{\textquoteright} performance quality. Our methodology may help journalists and fans understand what makes women{\textquoteright}s football a distinct sport and coaches design tactics tailored to female teams.},
	doi = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0255407},
	url = {https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0255407},
	author = {Luca Pappalardo and Alessio Rossi and Michela Natilli and Paolo Cintia},
	editor = {Constantinou, Anthony C.}
}
