The CIES Football Observatory is comprised of four people: three researchers (Drs Raffaele Poli, Roger Besson and Loïc Ravenel) and a collaborator responsible for the gathering of data (Andrea Pessina). The Observatory also benefits from the support of the staff of the Centre International d’Etude du Sport (CIES), an education and research centre to which it belongs.

Our mission is to advance the frontiers of knowledge for the sustainable development of football worldwide.

Since its creation in 2005, the Football Observatory research group within the CIES has become a reference point in the demographic and economic study of the football players’ labour and transfer markets, the analysis of the clubs’ and players’ performance (technical, tactical, physical), as well as the scientific estimation of transfer values.

The CIES Football Observatory is regularly mandated by key governing bodies (FIFA, UEFA, ECA, SAFF, etc.), many of the most reknown clubs worldwide (Chelsea, Arsenal, Juventus, Atlético de Madrid, Benfica, Olympique Lyonnais, Stade Rennais, Ajax, etc.), as well as player unions, agents, lawyers and sponsors. Mandates are also carried out through the wider remit of the CIES Sports Observatory for organisations such as FIBA and the IOC.

The CIES Football Observatory enjoys considerable success and a rapidly growing reputation. More than 33k subscribers receive our weekly newsletters. The website records over one million views per year. The group is also present on the main social media: X, Instagram, Facebook, Threads and BlueSky for a total of >140k followers.