In this Weekly Post, the CIES Football Observatory analyses the differences observed over the last year between 63 leagues worldwide in terms of referees’ propensity to hand out penalty cards for fouls. Referees in Japan’s top two divisions are the least likely to issue cards for fouls (around one penalty card every ten fouls), while the opposite is true in Chile and Colombia (around one card every five fouls).

These gaps reflect both different degrees of severity in refereeing styles and discrepancies in the tendency of players to commit gross fouls. The Latin American leagues stand out for their harsh refereeing styles and the propensity of footballers to play violently, with the two phenomena feeding off each other, in contrast to Asia, where referees are less severe and players more disciplined.

The Post also presents the proportion of cards issued for fouls, with a maximum of 93.2% in the Ukrainian Premier League and a minimum of 59.2% in the Bolivian Primera División, where disputes and other forms of indiscipline are commonplace. The latter situation was also observed in the Brazilian Serie A (only 60.7% of penalty cards handed out for fouls), as well as in the top two tiers of Turkish football.

>>> Full data

The 496th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post ranks the teams of 37 leagues around the world according to the percentage of ‘minutes secured’, i.e. the share of the current season’s domestic league minutes played by footballers still under contract with a duration beyond the year 2026. Chelsea tops the list with 91.8% of minutes secured.

Monaco (91.3% of minutes secured) and AZ Alkmaar (89.2%) complete the podium of teams whose squad planning is most likely to bring stability in the coming years or, in the event of transfers, to generate substantial capital gains. Spain’s Real Sociedad (88.4%) and France’s Paris St-Germain also are in the top five positions.

The latter team has the highest value among UEFA’s Champions League quarter-finalists, ahead of another club well prepared for the future: Arsenal (85.8%). AZ Alkmaar aside, two other teams outside the five major European leagues feature in the top ten: Russia’s Zenit St. Petersburg and England Championship’s Coventry City.

>>> Data for all teams in the 37 leagues

The 495th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the world’s 100 best performing players from an attacking perspective in terms of their statistics in three areas of the game : take on, chance creation and finishing. Michael Olise tops the rankings with an average index of 88.5 in these three domains and a maximum value of 99 in chance creation.

The Bayern Munich’s French international is ahead of Barcelona’s Spaniard Lamine Yamal (87.7) and Bayer Leverkusen’s German Florian Wirtz (85.0). The top 10 also includes two Brazilians (Vinícius and Savinho), two Frenchmen (Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué), an Englishman (Bukayo Saka), an Egyptian (Mohamed Salah) and a Dutchman (Noa Lang).

The latter is the top-ranked player active outside the big-5 European leagues. He is ahead of Estêvão Willian (Palmeiras, on loan from Chelsea) and Rodri Sánchez (Al-Arabi). The oldest players in the top 100 are Iago Aspas (Celta Vigo), Karim Benzema (Al-Ittihad) and Yacine Brahimi (Al-Gharafa). Only footballers who played at least 1,080 minutes during the current season were taken into account.

* This report provides more information on the CIES Football Observatory’s performance indices elaborated from Wyscout data.

>>> Top 100

Issue number 494 of the CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the 100 players from outside the big-5 European leagues whose transfer value has risen the most over the last six months. At the top of the list is Porto’s Spanish striker Samu Aghehowa, second top scorer in the Portuguese top flight, with an increase of €39 million (from €29.6m to €68.6m).

Palmeiras’ new Brazilian full international Estêvão Willian, owned by Chelsea, comes second with an increase of €30 million (from €30m to €60m). Benfica’s Spaniard Álvaro Carreras completes the podium (+€28m) ahead of teammate Tomás Araújo (+€25m). Three other players active in Portugal are in the top 10 (Conrad Harder, Geovany Quenda and Roger Fernandes), along with Antoni Milambo (Feyenoord), Jan-Carlo Simić (Anderlecht) and Mika Godts (Ajax).

All estimates have been calculated on the basis of a statistical model developed exclusively by the CIES Football Observatory research team, built on almost 10,000 paid transactions, as detailed in this scientific paper. This tool presents the best-valued players per team in 65 leagues worldwide. A paying platform with weekly valuations of over 30,000 players is also available for professionals in the game.

>>> Top 100

To celebrate its twenty years of existence and pay tribute to the clubs developing the talent that makes us love football, the CIES Football Observatory is very proud to present a study of the teams that have trained* the most players fielded in Europe’s big-5 over the last two decades. The top three are Real Madrid (166 players), Barcelona (156) and Paris St-Germain (111).

Olympique Lyonnais and Manchester United (both with 103 players) are at the foot of the podium, followed by Stade Rennais and Atalanta (94). Among the teams outside the big-5, the three having trained the most footballers who have played in the five major leagues since 2005/06 are Ajax (73 players), Sporting CP (64) and River Plate (51). Boca Juniors (49 players) and Benfica (45) are also in the top 5.

To celebrate twenty years of hard work, the CIES Football Observatory research team has also prepared a more in-depth study, published as the 99th Monthly Report, notably including details of the footballers trained by team and a map of all the big-5 clubs in which they have played. Enjoy the read and thank you for your interest!

* Training clubs are defined as the first teams where footballers have played for at least three years between the seasons of their fifteenth and twenty-first birthdays (seasons of these birthdays included).

>>> Weekly Post

>>> Monthly Report

Using technical data collected by our partners Wyscout, the CIES Football Observatory has developed various synthetic indices on a base of 100 to measure the level of performance of players in six areas of the game (more details here). This Weekly Post presents the hundred U23 midfielders from 46 leagues around the world with the highest values in ground defence (see below).

Borussia Mönchengladbach’s Rocco Reitz has the highest score. The German is ahead of another big-5 league player, Barcelona’s Spaniard Marc Casadó, and Genk’s Guinean Ibrahima Sory Bangoura. After a season in the reserve team, Bangoura is emerging as a potential transfer candidate to an even bigger club. Two other players from outside the big-5 are in the top 10: Amine Lachkar (Willem II) and Nick Fichtinger (Zwolle).

Tenth overall, Las Palmas’ Portuguese Dário Essugo (on loan from Sporting CP) has the highest score among players who have not yet celebrated their twentieth birthday. The three youngest players in the top 100 are Frenchmen Ayyoub Bouaddi (LOSC Lille) and Warren Zaïre-Emery (Paris St-Germain), as well as Swede Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham). Of the 46 leagues analysed, 32 are represented by at least one player in the top 100.

The ground defence index is calculated by adding up the defensive duels won by players below elbow height, pass interceptions and anticipations on loose balls (without clear possession) in relation to the average values measured at team and position level (on a pro rata basis of the different positions played). The value obtained is corrected by the success rate of ground duels undertaken and the sporting level of the matches played.

>>> Full rankings