Evolution of technical-tactical performance indicators based on the year of college of the male goalkeepers of the NCAA Division I of the United States

The objective of the study was to analyse the evolution of game statistics as a function of the year of college of NCAA Division I male goalkeepers. The sample was all 43,079 goalkeeper’s participations (average of 3916 goalkeeper’s participations of 405 goalkeepers per season) from 202 male teams from Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) of United States (2010-2021 seasons). A retrospective non-experimental design was used. The variables studied were goalie games played, percentage of goalie games started, goals allowed, goalkeeper’s goals-against average, saves, saves percentage, shutouts, combined shutouts, yellow cards, and red cards. A one-way ANOVA was used to study the evolution between goalkeepers from top and bottom teams. To analyse the differences according to top and bottom teams, a T-test and a discriminant analysis were performed. As goalkeepers gain experience, their participation in games played and games started increases significantly (second, third- and fourth-year goalkeepers) and their effectiveness increases (decrease in goals allowed and increase in shutouts). These findings highlight the importance of experience, training, maturity in goalkeeper performance and the differences in recruitment between teams.