Exploratory review of the scientific production of 5-blind soccer with the Bibliometrix tool

Background/Objective. Different studies have investigated blind 5-a-side football through quantitative and qualitative studies, seeking to identify the factors that influence the practice of this sport. However, to date, no exploratory review has been reported that identifies research trends on blind 5-a-side football. The aim was to provide an overview of the research area on blind 5-a-side football to identify trends and research gaps in this topic. Materials and methods. Research was conducted through the following databases: Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar. Finally, a total of 85 documents were included. Analyses were performed using the R program Bibliometrix, considering the occurrence of authors, keywords, institutional affiliations, countries and journals. Results. Quantitative studies are prevalent (84.70%) versus qualitative studies (12.94%) and mixed designs (2.35%). Most studies focus on injury studies, body composition, and to a lesser extent, on the analysis of external load in competition and the study of technical-tactical variables. The most prolific author is Gamonales, J.M., with 10 studies reported in Scopus. Brazil and Spain are the most productive countries, with English being the predominant language. The journal with the largest number of published documents is Retos. the most frequently cited concepts are humans, young adults, and injuries. Conclusions. The analysis of scientific production on blind 5-a-side football reveals the need for more studies in other areas that have been less explored, including studies on technical, psychological, and psychosocial variables. Ultimately, this could result in a greater impact and reach of blind 5-a-side football in various contexts, allowing for a deeper understanding of the relationship between different performance factors.