The Relative Age Effect in male futsal in the school context: a narrative review

Abstract

Objective: To present, through a narrative review, the publications related to the RAE in male futsal in the school context. Methods: For this proposal, an electronic search in the CAPES Portal de Periódicos database was carried out in October 2022 without restriction of school-related terms, using the following descriptors: RAE, Relative Age Effect, EIR, Efeito da Idade Relativa and Futsal, and their combinations, considering original and review articles, published in Portuguese and English, without date delimitation. From the 104 articles found, 80 were excluded for being duplicated or not having access, two after reading the titles and abstracts and 16 after reading the full text, with six articles being considered for this review. Results: Despite the scarcity of studies, the results suggest that RAE is a phenomenon often evidenced in younger categories. Conclusion: RAE is a recurrent phenomenon in male futsal in the school context, since studies point to its existence in younger categories, in addition to demonstrating significance in different variables of this sport. However, more studies are needed with regard to the categories between 10 and 15 years old, seeking a better understanding of the RAE at the beginning of the futsal student-athletes’ sporting life.