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Football · Level 8: Expert · Sub-level 8.85

Heatmaps & Touch Maps

10 tests · 100 facts · updated 12 October 2026 · markdown

How to read football's maps: heatmaps, touch maps, average positions, passing networks, shot maps, maps by role, maps for coaches and players, the opponent on a map, a season on a map and where maps mislead.

Each test below is ten questions on Insporta. The list under a test is what the questions check: one fact per question, with the source it was written from. Read it before the test, or come back from a wrong answer.

Test 1What a heatmap showsTake a test

  1. A heatmap colours the pitch by how many of his touches or actions fell in each area, hottest where they were most concentrated.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Each touch is spread into a small soft patch and the patches are added up, which turns dots into a smooth surface.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. Teams change ends at half-time; flipping one half keeps a left-back on the left of the picture for the whole match.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Most tools colour the hottest spot of each map at full strength, so a quiet match can look as bright as a busy one.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Event data logs actions on the ball, so off-ball runs and positioning are missing unless the map is built from tracking data.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. A winger may hug the touchline with the ball and tuck into midfield without it; one combined map would blur both jobs.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. The map shows where he was active, not whether his passes, dribbles or tackles there were good.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. Direction is normalised before smoothing, so both halves are added to the same picture.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. A single short cameo can show almost anything; a season shows where he really plays.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The activity runs high up the pitch along the top touchline, which is the left flank for a team attacking to the right.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 2Touch mapsTake a test

  1. A touch map keeps every action visible, while a heatmap blurs them into a smooth surface.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Touches add up all of a player's actions on the ball, which is why they are used to show involvement.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. A striker who touches the ball in the box often is in position for chances, whatever the finishing that follows.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. With only a handful of actions, smoothing can create a misleading hot area; separate dots show exactly what happened.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Touches far from goal are the footprint of a striker who comes short to connect midfield and attack.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. A winger kept high for the counter-attack rarely helps in his own half, and the map shows it.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Separate colours for passes, dribbles, shots and defensive actions turn a map of places into a map of jobs.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The further forward a player's role, the more of his touches fall in the penalty area.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Direction and sample size come first; only then do the clusters say something about the role.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. Almost all of his touches are inside the penalty area, the profile of a forward who lives in the box.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 3Average-position mapsTake a test

  1. Each player's dot is the average of where his on-ball actions happened during the chosen period.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. A winger who spends half the match on each side averages to the middle, a place he may have barely visited.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. After a substitution or a change of system, averages from the two shapes blend into one that never existed.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Bigger circles mark the players most involved on the ball, which shows where a team's play runs through.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  5. A side may build as a 3-2-5 and defend as a 4-4-2; one average for both phases hides the change.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Tracking follows every player all the time, so the average reflects positioning, not just the moments on the ball.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Full-backs whose average sits that far forward spent much of the match in attack, the sign of a dominant, attacking side.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The time window comes first, because substitutions and tactical changes alter the averages.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Average positions follow the team's shape from the goalkeeper up to the striker.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. His average sits beside the holding midfielder rather than out wide, the pattern of an inverted full-back.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 4Passing networksTake a test

  1. Thicker lines mark pairs who exchanged more passes, which shows the routes a team's play took.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Nodes sit at each player's mean location, so the network shows both the shape and the connections.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. A minimum number of passes keeps the main connections readable instead of a web of faint lines.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Network analysts call this centrality: the more connections run through a player, the more the team relies on him.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. If most passes run through one player, pressing or screening him can break the team's usual routes.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Without links from midfield, the striker was not receiving the ball in the way the team's attacks usually need.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Only successful passes create links, so the attempts that were cut out, and the risk they carried, are invisible.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. Positions and pass counts come from the same time window, usually up to the first substitution.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. The pivot and the centre-backs build most of the play; a goalkeeper rarely passes straight to his striker.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The thickest lines all meet at 6, who links both centre-backs with both central midfielders.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 5Shot mapsTake a test

  1. Bigger circles are better chances, so the map shows both where a player shoots from and how good those shots were.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Every penalty comes from the same place with about 0.76 xG, which would dwarf the open-play pattern.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. Lots of small circles at distance is the signature of a player who shoots whenever he can, not when the chance is good.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Filled markers for goals and hollow ones for other shots let the reader compare outcome with chance quality.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. A single match may hold three or four shots; a season shows where a player really tends to shoot from.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Knowing that a side shoots mainly from the edge of the box or from cut-backs shapes the keeper's positioning.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Mapping the shots it conceded shows whether the defence keeps attempts to long range or lets opponents near goal.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. Marker size follows xG, from a long speculative shot to one of the best chances in football.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. The same data gives location, quality and outcome in one picture.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The three large circles sit near the six-yard box, while the small ones are from outside the penalty area.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 6Maps by roleTake a test

  1. The role moves him from the flank into central midfield when his team has the ball, and the map follows him there.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. As the only player on his side of the pitch, a wing-back runs from his own box to the opponent's.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. Coming out to clear through balls and join the build-up puts many of his touches beyond the box.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. The role asks him to defend his own box and arrive in the opponent's, so his activity stretches along the middle.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. A false 9 drops into midfield to receive and combine; a target man stays high against the centre-backs.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Wingers told to stay wide stretch the defence, so their activity hugs the line in the attacking half.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. A 'left-back' may play as a midfielder in possession; the map shows the job he really did.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The holding player screens the defence, the box-to-box player covers the middle, and the 10 lives behind the striker.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. A centre-back stays in his own half, a winger mostly in the other half, and a wing-back covers both.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The activity runs along the whole bottom touchline, the right flank for a team attacking right, from one box to the other.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 7Using maps with coaches and playersTake a test

  1. Players think in terms of space on the pitch, so a map lands faster than a row of figures.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. Comparing the map with the areas the coach asked him to occupy starts a concrete conversation.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. The overlay turns a general impression into a specific gap between plan and reality.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. A map shows where things happened; the clips show why, which is what a player can change.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Easy access lets players look back at a match in minutes, before the next session.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Seeing, for example, that a winger has barely entered the final third lets the coach change something for the second half.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. A map chosen for a question, such as 'is our left side overloaded?', is far more useful than a general picture.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The material is prepared first; the review ends with a small number of concrete points.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. The simpler the picture, the faster a player can take it in between sessions.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The hot areas sit well inside the dashed line, in the left channel and centre, not on the touchline.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 8The opponent on a mapTake a test

  1. If most of the opponent's attacks come down one side, the defending side can strengthen it.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. Pressing where the opponent already gives the ball away turns its weaknesses into chances.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. Knowing whether they go short or to one target area tells the team where to set up for the second ball.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. If crosses come mainly from deep on one flank, the defenders there can be told to close that space.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Recoveries high up the pitch mean an aggressive press; knowing its zones helps a team play around it.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. If one centre-back or the pivot starts most moves, the press can be aimed at forcing the ball elsewhere.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. A red card, the score or one opponent can distort a single game; several show the habits.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The report exists to shape the plan; patterns from several matches matter more than one striking picture.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. The closer to the opponent's goal the ball is won, the shorter the route to a shot.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. Most entries come along the top of the picture, the opponent's right and so the home team's left.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 9A season on a mapTake a test

  1. Across many matches the unusual days wash out and the player's normal zones stand out.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. A side that presses high at home and sits deeper away will put its players in different places.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. A new system or a new job, for example a winger moved inside, shows up quickly on the map.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Half a season at left-back and half at centre-back averages into a map that fits neither job.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. More touches in the box usually means more chances; a falling rate warns of a problem before the goals dry up.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. A full-back who lives in the opponent's half against weak sides may spend big matches defending his own box.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Using, for example, the last five matches keeps the picture current, so changes show up quickly.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  8. Direction must be consistent before combining, and a change of role is best shown as separate maps.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Short windows react quickly but are noisy; a whole season is stable but slow to show a change.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. His touches in the box roughly doubled, from 3.1 to 6.4 per 90, so the new set-up puts him near goal far more often.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 10Where maps misleadTake a test

  1. If each touch is spread too widely, two distinct zones become one large blob and the detail is lost.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Event data sees only moments on the ball; tracking follows every step, including all his runs without it.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. A side 2-0 up for an hour and a side chasing a goal will produce very different maps whatever their usual style.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. The Laws allow a range of lengths and widths, so providers scale each ground to a standard pitch to make maps comparable.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. A defender who prevents passes by standing in the right place makes fewer tackles and touches, so his map is quieter.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. The colour measures how often, not how well; he may lose the ball most in the very area where he is busiest.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Definitions of touches and actions vary, so two maps of the same player can differ for reasons that have nothing to do with him.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. Colours by action keep what he did; plain dots keep only where; smoothing blurs even the exact places.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Source and sample come first, then the orientation, then the context that may have shaped the picture.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. In 20 minutes a player may touch the ball a dozen times, and each map colours its busiest area at full strength anyway.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Sources

IFAB Laws of the Game / FIFA & UEFA technical reports / Opta, StatsBomb and FBref definitions / club and analyst publications / peer-reviewed research

  • Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions)100