Model-Based Clustering of Football Event Sequences: A Marked Spatio-Temporal Point Process Mixture Approach

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Hauptverfasser: Amezouwui, Koffi, Gelein, Brigitte, Marbac, Matthieu, Sorel, Anthony
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Amezouwui, Koffi
Gelein, Brigitte
Marbac, Matthieu
Sorel, Anthony
author_facet Amezouwui, Koffi
Gelein, Brigitte
Marbac, Matthieu
Sorel, Anthony
contents We propose a novel mixture model for football event data that clusters entire possessions to reveal their temporal, sequential, and spatial structure. Each mixture component models possessions as marked spatio-temporal point processes: event types follow a finite Markov chain with an absorbing state for ball loss, event times follow a conditional Gamma process to account for dispersion, and spatial locations evolve via truncated Brownian motion. To aid interpretation, we derive summary indicators from model parameters capturing possession speed, number of events, and spatial dynamics. Parameters are estimated through maximum likelihood via Generalized Expectation-Maximization algorithm. Applied to StatsBomb data from 38 Ligue 1 matches (2020/2021), our approach uncovers distinct defensive possession patterns faced by Stade Rennais. Unlike previous approaches focusing on individual events, our mixture structure enables principled clustering of full possessions, supporting tactical analysis and the future development of realistic virtual training environments.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_14297
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Model-Based Clustering of Football Event Sequences: A Marked Spatio-Temporal Point Process Mixture Approach
Amezouwui, Koffi
Gelein, Brigitte
Marbac, Matthieu
Sorel, Anthony
Applications
We propose a novel mixture model for football event data that clusters entire possessions to reveal their temporal, sequential, and spatial structure. Each mixture component models possessions as marked spatio-temporal point processes: event types follow a finite Markov chain with an absorbing state for ball loss, event times follow a conditional Gamma process to account for dispersion, and spatial locations evolve via truncated Brownian motion. To aid interpretation, we derive summary indicators from model parameters capturing possession speed, number of events, and spatial dynamics. Parameters are estimated through maximum likelihood via Generalized Expectation-Maximization algorithm. Applied to StatsBomb data from 38 Ligue 1 matches (2020/2021), our approach uncovers distinct defensive possession patterns faced by Stade Rennais. Unlike previous approaches focusing on individual events, our mixture structure enables principled clustering of full possessions, supporting tactical analysis and the future development of realistic virtual training environments.
title Model-Based Clustering of Football Event Sequences: A Marked Spatio-Temporal Point Process Mixture Approach
topic Applications
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.14297