The Speed of Reaction to Light Stimuli Does not Explain Reactive Agility Performance of Soccer Players: The Need for Specific Speed

Background: The motor response to human visual stimuli is unique and differs from the reaction to light-based visual stimuli. While laboratory-based tests offer valuable insights into athletes' basic perceptual-motor abilities, their translation to actual sports-specific tests is limited. Methods: Following a thorough warm-up, 44 collegiate-level male soccer players (age: 24.4 ± 2.5y, mass: 63.01 ± 7.3kg, Stature: 167.62 ± 6.3cm) from a tertiary institution completed the following tests: Sports Vision Test (SVT - 20-light proactive speed test), 40m sprint test (split times over 5, 10, and 20m), and a live Reactive Agility Test (RAT) entailing them to sprint, change direction (left or right in response to a live tester) and sprint again. Results: Numerous moderate correlations were seen between the RAT and various sprint distances (r > 0.3, ES > 0.3, P < 0.05). The reaction speed relationship between the light-based (SVT) and live stimuli (RAT) test yielded a weak relationship (r > 0.4, ES > 0.5, P < 0.05). Furthermore, hand-eye coordination speed did not predict acceleration or top speed, while the total RAT time did explain 10.5% of top speed (40m). Conclusions: Although limited, the correlations observed between the reaction to light test, sprint speed, and reaction to visual stimuli encourage the training thereof to maintain attentional focus and situational awareness, skills deemed crucial for reacting effectively in dynamic game situations. Future studies should aim to adapt contextual factors of laboratory-based tests to improve ecological validity to further explore the transferability of skills from the laboratory to the field.