# Rule Modification’s Effects on the Feedback Type Given by Coaches at Young Football Levels

## TL;DR

This study examines how changing football rules affects the type of feedback coaches give to young players.

## Contribution

The study introduces a novel approach to understanding how rule modifications influence coaching feedback in youth football.

## Key findings

- Modified rules led to changes in feedback orientation and autonomy.
- Coaches predominantly gave individual, prescriptive, affective, and non-valuable feedback in both tournaments.
- Results partially align with previous studies but differ from scientific recommendations.

## Abstract

Background: An adapted competition should create a favourable environment to tailor the feedback provided to the needs of young athletes. The aim of this study was to analyse the influence of rule modification on the type of feedback given by coaches to young football players. Method: The study sample consisted of four under-10 male coaches from four Spanish teams. The analysis was conducted using a quasi-experimental A-B design, in which two tournaments were played: Tournament 1 with the official Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) rules and Tournament 2 with rule modifications. All the feedback provided by the group of coaches during the two tournaments was recorded, yielding a total of 4.386 for Tournament 1 and 3.728 for Tournament 2. Results: The results showed that in both tournaments, the predominant feedback from the coaches was individual, prescriptive, affective, and non-valuable. However, they indicated that the orientation of the feedback and its autonomy positively varied during the adapted competition. The data obtained align with the results of other studies on the type of feedback given by coaches, despite some differing from scientific recommendations. Conclusions: It can be concluded that the modified rule competition promoted changes in the type of feedback provided by the coaches.