Professional soccer matches are giving us some fascinating data to work with. But wait, when we look closely at the available public data, we see that getting access to valuable information is still quite hard.

        So, let's dive into this puzzle. There is a set, of seven matches, from both first and second-division Bundesliga leagues in Germany. In this data set, the detail is amazing; there are match details like who's playing.

        Then, there is a carefully organized list of events during the match. These are the moments you'll want to focus on for your analysis. A pass here, a shot there, or even a foul!

        But there is a kicker, the system is so detailed that has the x/y-coordinates of players and the ball.

        What is really exciting is that you can compare these observations over time by having the logs with timestamps. This adds a whole new dimension to match dynamics. And boy, as this type of data set becomes more widely available  researchers, developers, and analysts will be in a good position to validate tests and come up with new methods to take advantage of the plethora of data.

        Practitioners can now study the game at a deeper level. With this type of care , the data now has a big, greener open-door policy. The availability of data is publicized under  "CC-BY-4. 0" but what does that really mean to you?

        This allows all of the pluses of transparent, reproducibility, and the scholarly ethics. Data should be shared without any red-tape. But for starters, we need enough data of the same high quality as this dataset. Keep the ball rolling in this field and do your part in leading the cause of open soccer analysis.

Let's analyze some football matches!

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