1. Introduction
Team sports are an essential part of human culture and
play a crucial role in many societies worldwide. From
ancient times to modern times, team sports have been
a source of entertainment, a driver for people to
engage in physical exercise, and a way to bring people
together regularly. However, while TV viewer
numbers all over the world show a globally great
interest in team sports, such as during the recent
soccer World Cup or the American football Super Bowl
[1], there is a noticeable decline in active participation
in these sports [
2,3
]. Especially the dropout rate in
organized sports in adolescence is very high. Research
indicates that various discrete factors cause the
decision to quit, which can be summarized into five
primary sources: lack of enjoyment, perception of
competence, social pressure, competing priorities and
physical factors [2]. As enjoyment is the number one
reason for people to participate in sports activities
[
2,4,5
], it is not surprising that individuals stop
engaging in team sports because the activity becomes
unenjoyable over time [
5
]. In Europe, the recruitment
and especially the retention of members is reported to
be a significant challenge by more than a fifth of the
0000-0002-0111-9420 (S. Birnstiel); 0000-0002-7665-8971 (B.
Morschheuser)
sports clubs [
6
]. With the COVID-19 pandemic, the
quitting rate even further increased [
7
].
In parallel, digital games are increasingly gaining
attention in society and have not only become one of
the most popular leisure activities in recent years but
have also penetrated areas such as education, culture,
health, work, and especially sports [
8
]. Further,
gamification, which refers to ‘the use of game design
elements in non-game contexts’ [
9
] in order to enhance
motivation in an activity and even change behavior
[
10
], is increasingly applied in individual sports [
8
].
Previous studies indicate that gamification can
increase athletes' enjoyment and continued
participation in various forms of exercise [
8,11–13
]
and that users already expect digital applications for
sports to be gamified [
14
]. As a consequence, we see an
increasing number of gameful solutions in the app
stores that aim to engage people in specific physical
activities [
15
], such as taking more steps per day, going
running or cycling, by using game design features such
as captivating stories, competitions or rewards.
Previous research at the intersection of digital games
and sports has yielded a plethora of studies and
reviews focusing on the gamification of sports, which
extensively explore and document this fusion
[
13,16,17
]. Surprisingly, the intersection of games and
team sports has hardly been considered so far,
although combining the two phenomena has the
potential to boost the motivation and enjoyment of
participating in team sports and offers a chance to
ensure the survival and prosperity of youth sports by
addressing the number one reason for quitting [
18
].
Additionally, a lack of structured guidance for future
research on the interwoven phenomena of digital
games and team sports prevents us from gaining a
more detailed understanding of the existing
relationships, interactions and yet untapped potential.
Therefore, we are conducting a scoping study to
structure the field, identify initial approaches and
overlaps, and provide anchor points for future
research in this emerging research area.
2. Conceptual framework
Guided by the goal of our research, it is of great
relevance to first investigate to what extent the
parallel but closely related concepts of team sports and
(digital) games differ in their origins and what
similarities exist. In recent decades, various
philosophers and scientists have addressed this
question in order to contribute to a better
understanding of these interwoven phenomena. While
reviewing the literature on this topic, we mapped the
relationships between the two disciplines into a
conceptual framework, depicted in Figure 1.
2.1. Games
One of the first famous approaches to defining the term
game is the attempt by Wittgenstein [
19
]. He denied
that there is any common feature in the multifaceted
approaches we call game, pointing out that the
meaning of the term is not as simple as it sounds. He
rather suggested clustering games into families
dependent on the presence and absence of the
characteristics of strategy and luck. Roger Caillois later
separated between paidia as playfulness and ludus as
formal, rule-based game behavior [
20
].
To this day in literature, there are numerous
definitions of the term game, and between them, a lot
of discussions and critics [
21
]. One more precise and
widely used definition originated from Suits [
22
]:
‘to play a game is to engage in activity directed
toward bringing about a specific state of affairs,
using only means permitted by specific rules, where
the means permitted by the rules are more limited in
scope than they would be in the absence of the rules,
and where the sole reason for accepting such
limitation is to make possible such activity’
In other words, he reduces the construct of game
to four defining factors: a goal, means, rules and lusory
attitude [
23
]. This concept is very broad but has been
considered as a common basis for the two related
phenomena of team sports and digital games, which is
why it is placed at the top of the conceptual framework
in Figure 1.
2.2. Digital games
Games are a formative part of human culture [
24
].
People have always played games and continue to do
so in modern times, not just in analog forms but also in
digital games. The invention of the TV in 1909 laid the
foundations to bring games into a digital world. The
1970s and 1980s was the great period of arcade games
and home gaming, after the first PC games came out.
Since 2007 casual gaming even on smartphones
became common and latest since then digital games
became part of our everyday lives. Digital games, as
games mediated through digital media, are therefore a
subcategory of the broad concept of games and are
presented as such on the left side of the framework in
Figure 1.
Beyond the defining factors found by Suits [
22
],
digital games are a multifaceted, continuously evolving
phenomenon that can include a large variety of
mechanics and features that induce these unique
gameful experiences that excite people about games. A
specific subset of digital games worth highlighting in
our case are multiplayer games. Multiplayer games
and modes (i.e. multiplayer expansions of primarily
single-player games) utilize specific mechanics and
features to asynchronously or synchronously connect
people in play. These features can be split into
cooperative approaches like team challenges, for which
multiple players have to work together to reach a
shared goal; competitive approaches when players
have the individual goal to obstruct the goals of other
players; and cooperative-competitive approaches like
team competitions, in which groups of players have the
shared goal to obstruct the goals of others [
25
].
Although digital games and team sports are usually
considered as separate phenomena, they have many
similarities. Commonalities can be found in their
specific goal structures, rules and design features, in
particular in the case of multiplayer games. However,
team sports are also often used as a source of
inspiration for digital games, such as FIFA or Madden
NFL [
26,27
].
2.3. Sports and team sports
Analogous to the umbrella term games, the term sports
is also used in a sprawling way to cover a wide range
of concepts. It is a colloquial term used worldwide
since the beginning of the 20th century, making it
difficult to find a comprehensive and precise definition
of sports [
28
]. Nevertheless, there are attempts such as
in the Oxford dictionary of sport science and medicine
[
29
], which defines sport as ‘structured, goal directed,
physical activity governed by rules, which has a high
level of commitment, takes the form of a struggle with
oneself or involves competition with others’. The
dictionary also describes characteristics of play and
external rewards combined with intrinsic satisfaction
from the activity itself as sources of motivation. This
definition describes some aspects that are reminiscent
of the definition of a game, such as goals and rules,
which shows that the two concepts are somehow
related. Furthermore, human activity, which serves
physical and mental exertion, is a crucial part of the
concept [
30,31
].
Team sports are an integral part of human culture
in various societies around the world, which is why
this subset of sports is worthy of special attention. In
team sports, individuals are organized into opposing
teams consisting of at least two players, and the teams
play against each other [
31
]. The most popular team
sports worldwide, based on TV viewer numbers,
include e.g. soccer, cricket and hockey [
32
].
According to Suits, ‘sports are essentially games’
[
23
], fitting into his definition of games cited earlier in
this paper. To differentiate sports, he added further
distinctive elements of sports compared to other types
of games: (1) sport is a game of skill, (2) the skill is
physical, (3) the game has a wide following and (4)
achieved stability [
23
]. He later proposed a distinction
between sports that are refereed games and sports that
are not games but judged performances, revising his
first definition to classify all sports as games [
33
].
Refereed games in his definition, are sports such as
soccer or basketball, which have constitutive rules, as
opposed to diving or figure skating (judged
performances), which have no constitutive rules but
focus on performance. However, Suit's revised
definition sparked a philosophical debate with
scholars, such as Meier, Kretchmar, and Hurka all
rejecting Suit's revision and arguing for his first
definition that all sports are games [
34–36
]. This
indicates that the dominant view among scholars is
that all sports are games. For this reason, the term
(team) sport, like digital games, forms a subcategory of
games in the framework in Figure 1. However, since
scholars diverge on this point, the connecting line
remains dashed.
2.4. Gamified sports
While a main difference between digital games and
team sports is that sports commonly require physical
skills and digital games are used via digital media,
there has recently been a rise in hybrid forms, which
combine aspects of digital games with physical sports.
Such approaches are often called exertion games or
exergames, meaning digital games or gameful systems
for exercise [
13
], which can be grouped under the
umbrella term of gamification [
37
].
Gamification refers to the use of game design elements
to transfer any activity into one that affords additional
gameful experience [
37
]. In individual sports, there are
numerous examples of applications in which
gamification has been applied to extend physical
activity with gameful experiences, such as Ring Fit
Adventure for Nintendo Switch, where fitness
exercises are embedded into a video game [
38
] or the
smartphone app Zombies, Run! motivating runners
with captivating narratives [
39
]. These applications
are mainly used by individual athletes. However, there
are also applications with integrated multiplayer
modes, such as Zwift, that cyclists can use to interact
and ride with other cyclists virtually or compete in
virtual races [
40
]. Considerable research has already
been carried out in this area, even focusing on various
technologies, including wearables and Virtual Reality
(VR) [
13,16,17
]. Such gamification can make sports
more enjoyable and even improve performance [
8,12
].
Based on the positive findings on the use of
gamification in individual sports, potential benefits on
motivation and performance in team sports can be
assumed [
8,11,12
]. Further, we recently see an
increasing interest of people in innovative forms of
gamified team sports, such as various fantasy sports
apps like NFL Fantasy or Fantasy Premier League
[
41,42
], in which the users can build virtual teams and
compete against other players based on the
performance of professional real-world matches, or an
American football league, where fans control the plays
online to make watching the game more enjoyable
[
43
]. Finally, there are many potential use cases for
using gamification in team sports, such as applications
to improve physical skill in team sports training with
exergames or to improve cognitive skills with serious
games, which can be games focusing on sports-related
education or raising awareness of specific topics in
team sports [
44
]. Although evidence from individual
sports and practice suggests that gamification can also
bring many benefits in team sports, we lack a
structured understanding of the current body of
knowledge in this field and guidance for future
research to advance our understanding of these new
hybrid forms of gamified team sports and to better
support practitioners in leveraging existing
opportunities. Therefore, this paper presents a
scoping review guided by the following research
questions:
• RQ1: How has existing research applied
gamification in team sports?
• RQ2: What benefits and challenges of
using gamification in team sports contexts have
been identified in existing research?
3. Research method
The purpose of this scoping review is based on two
common reasons according to Arksey and O’Malley
[
45
]: First, this study aims to investigate the
abovedefined research questions by synthesizing the
existing body of knowledge related to the intersection
of team sports and digital games in order to clarify how
game design features are employed in hybrid forms
combining digital games and team sports as well as
whether and what game design features are beneficial
in different contexts of such hybrid forms. Second, this
study strives to identify key anchor points and
directions for future research in this area. We adopted
the framework of Arksey and O’Malley [
45
] to conduct
a scoping review and followed the five mandatory
stages enhanced by recommendations of Levac et al.
[
46
]: (1) defining a clear research question, (2)
identifying relevant studies with a balance of breadth
and depth, (3) iteratively selecting studies, (4)
charting the data and (5) analyzing, reporting and
considering the meaning of the findings.
The search string development was guided by our
research questions and focused on gamified team
sports, i.e. hybrid formats of the two disciplines, digital
games and team sports. To identify relevant keywords,
we conducted initial pilot searches and developed our
search string iteratively. The final search was:
TITLE-ABS-KEY ((gamif* OR exergam* OR
"extertion game" OR "extertion games" OR "serious
game" OR "serious games") AND ("team sports" OR
*ball OR soccer OR rugby OR hockey OR "water polo"
OR cricket OR curling OR bobsleigh))
The search string covered the term ‘team sports’
and any permutation of the term gamification,
exergame or serious game, covering the discipline of
digital games in a way that is usually used in
conjunction with other disciplines.
Further, in order to find relevant literature in the
field that focuses on a specific form of team sports but
may miss using the keyword team sports, we included
the names of popular team sports listed in the summer
and winter Olympic games [
47
] and additionally
included cricket, which is not listed as Olympic
discipline, but very popular in some countries, such as
India or Pakistan [
32
]. We needed to balance the
breadth and depth of the resulting literature to
provide a comprehensive and meaningful overview of
the field. Therefore, we decided not to include search
terms for esports, which can also be seen as a mix of
sports and games. This specific phenomenon has
recently received great attention in the scientific
literature, and many reviews already exist which
provide an overview of the scholarly work in this field
(cf. [
48–50
]). Therefore, and because the primary
focus of this review is on physical sports, we decided
not to include any esports-related search terms in our
search string.
We limited the literature search to the metadata
(title, abstract or keywords), as searching for the terms
in the whole text would result in a large amount of false
positives mentioning one of the searched terms
without being a central aspect of the paper. We used
the Scopus database as our source of data since it
contains the most potentially relevant databases in the
area around games and sports. The literature search in
the Scopus database was conducted in July 2023.
The Scopus search query resulted in 246 hits.
These contained 29 conference reviews and two
literature reviews, which do not provide
selfcontained research contributions, so we excluded
them from the literature review. We screened the
resulting 215 papers for inclusion and relevance by the
iteratively developed inclusion criteria: (1) screening
of the title and abstract indicates that gamification in
any connection with a team sport is a relevant topic in
the paper; (2) the paper is in English; (3) the full text
can be acquired; (4) a full paper screening shows that
gamification in any connection with a team sport is a
relevant topic in the paper.
Therefore, we excluded 126 papers based on their
title and abstract not containing team sports and a
form of gamification. For instance, we found that the
term *ball is used in various other contexts such as
Schuller [
51
] gazing into a crystal ball or Mizuyama et
al. [
52
] speaking of a snowball effect. Furthermore, we
excluded eight more papers not available in English
and five where the full paper was unavailable. After
reading the full text of the remaining papers, we
excluded additionally 15 papers not containing team
sports, such as Kaisar et al. [
53
] inventing a new
collaborative sports like game but not fitting our
understanding of team sports, or a paper missing a
concrete proposal for the use of a developed motion
recognition technique of tennis players in games, such
as Bačić [
54
]. At the same time, we excluded 33 papers
describing gamification features associated with team
sports, complementing other contexts such as
education or health, such as Cerqueira et al. [
55
]
designing an Augmented Reality soccer game that
supports the learning of basic mathematical functions
or Amprimo et al. [
56
] evaluating the effectiveness of a
soccer themed game for Parkinson rehabilitation.
Finally, we included the remaining 28 papers in the
scoping review: [
57–84
].
We created a charting table to investigate the pool
of papers in a deductive and iterative manner. We
extracted the papers' information regarding
bibliometric information, descriptive information
about the context and design of gamified systems
described in the papers, empirical work conducted,
and their findings. The charting table serves as the
basis for the results section. The most relevant findings
are presented in tables in the following section.
4. Results
4.1. Bibliometric information
As a first step, we examined the bibliometric data of
the 28 included papers. In 2011 initially the first paper
combining digital games and team sports was
published. Notably, the investigated research field has
developed in parallel with other research on gamified
information systems, which also started in 2011 [
8
].
The number of papers increased in the following years,
from one paper each in 2011 and 2012, to two papers
each in 2014 and 2015, to three papers in 2016. This
trend was interrupted in 2017, when no paper was
published, but continued in the following years with
one to three papers per year again until 2021.
Afterwards, there is a noticeable upward trend as
shown in Figure 2. In 2022, six papers were published,
followed by an additional five by July 2023.
Most papers were published at conferences and in
journals related to games, HCI and computer science
(18 papers). Further three papers were published at
conferences and in journals related to medicine and
sport sciences. The remaining articles were published
in venues related to social sciences (3), psychology (2),
and engineering (1), or were multidisciplinary (1).
More than half of the papers were published as
journal articles, starting with the first one in 2011. The
number of journal articles kept low with maximum one
paper per year until 2021, as illustrated in Figure 2.
Four journal articles were published in 2022, and five
journal articles were published in 2023 by the time the
review was conducted in July, indicating an increasing
trend. The remaining 13 papers were published at
conferences in varying numbers between zero and two
per year. However, a slightly decreasing trend of
conference papers is visible since 2019, and in 2023 no
conference paper was published by July.
The bibliometric descriptors of the reviewed
literature show an increasing amount of research that
has been published on the topic of gamification, such
as exergames, serious games and gamification
solutions connected to team sports. Since the number
of literature on gamification in general shows a
steadily increasing trend [
8
], we also expect to observe
a growing number of research papers for the future
combining digital games and team sports, as indicated
by Figure 2. The rising number of journal papers over
the last year indicates greater interest and in-depth
research on that topic in the future.
4.2. Identified topics
Members of universities conducted the projects
addressed in all reviewed papers. Some projects
additionally consulted sports experts outside
universities [
57,80
] related to the topics addressed.
Surprisingly, compared to the large amount of
academic attention devoted to the gamification of
individual sports, only 28 of the reviewed papers
address systems intending to gamify team sports. They
address mainly soccer (12), but also basketball (4),
handball (3), tennis (3), volleyball (2), baseball (2),
rugby (1) or various team sports at once (4). The
applications described in the papers mainly focus on a
specific aspect of the athletes' training, like practicing
basketball free throws in a VR simulator with
enhanced visual guidance [
58
], thus only covering
certain facets of sports. The single facets of the
respective team sport addressed were various, as
shown in Table 1, such as practicing concrete ball
throws or tennis swings with simulators, teaching
sports values with ratings transferable in a virtual
game or avoiding injuries by engaging habit tracking.
Most of these gamified applications build a separate
training block not fully included in the regular training
routines and is merely seen as an addition to standard
training, like VR basketball training [
58,59
] or
computer games such as eFootball PES [
85
] used to
improve tactical skills [
70
], what is caused by
technology constraints. While the majority of studies
focused on gamifying athletes' training, three papers
focused on the training of referees [
80
], sports
journalism [
81
] and the involvement of the audience
during public matches using fan tokens [
82
].
4.3. Gamification in team sports
The systems and technologies used to gamify team
sports are various, led by standard computer games, as
seen in Table 2. Some applications use technologies,
such as marker-based tracking, to track users' motion
data to be able to involve full body movements in the
gamified approach [
54,60
]. Other applications track
inputs on hit or light-sensitive surfaces, triggered
mainly by ball hits. Two papers also mention using VR
systems to present fully immersive games. Other
technologies, like game consoles, Smartphone apps
and Fitlights, which is a commercial multifunctional
light-based system for sports training [
86
], were rarely
used. One paper uses a very specific medical device, a
TecnoBody ProKin, for balance training with an
attached touch display to gamify rehabilitation
training for athletes with back pain [
78
].
While the technologies used to gamify team sports
are diverse, the gamification features used follow the
patterns identified in related reviews of the use of
gamification in other contexts [
8
]. Overall, game design
features were not discussed in detail. However, it is
worth noting that many of the features described were
used to create immersion in team sports, for example,
by using specific themes or environments known from
team sports, such as a soccer field as the design of a
virtual game board [
80
]. Additionally, it is noticeable
that points, scores and leaderboards are widely used
in the systems described, as in other areas [
8
]. Most
studies implemented game designs related to the sport
itself, like virtual soccer matches [
76
] or practicing
basketball or handball throws [
59,67
] or penalty shots
in soccer [
68
]. Most approaches award players with
points. Surprisingly only six of the reviewed papers
included multiplayer approaches in their applications.
Four of them mentioned pure competitive modes. Two
papers describe a system where competitive and
collaborative interactions are possible. In a basketball
application, several people can interact virtually on a
virtual basketball court, free in their decision how to
play together, collaboratively or competitively [
59
].
Another paper adds gamification features to standard
handball training, where cooperation and competition
usually are part of the game [
71
]. Other 18 papers
describe systems that can only be used individually.
The remaining four did not describe a concrete game.
They focus on a technical invention, a sports activity
recognition system for exergames in VR, or they
describe first ideas but without details on the game
design.
4.4. Effects of gamification in team sports
Twenty-two of the total 28 reviewed papers included
studies, out of which two papers showed preliminary
tests and results, such as Lyons et al. [
77
] who
conducted a pilot study for avoiding injuries using a
self-monitoring app without gamification features to
solve usability issues before adding additional
features. In addition, two papers examined the
functionality of a specific technical innovation, an
activity recognition system for VR sports games
including soccer, presented in an empirical study
without information on the effects of gamification
[
83,84
].
Except of pilot studies and evaluated technical
innovations, the remaining 18 papers evaluated the
effects of different forms of gamified team sports in
empirical studies. Nine of them collected mainly
quantitative data, four qualitative data and five used
mixed measures. The most commonly used method to
analyze the effects of the used gamified approach was
an experimental setup, which was used in 14 papers.
Only two papers focused on interviews and
observations, for example, to get insights into the
opinion of players on the game's proficiency and
derive challenges [
70
] or to gain experts' knowledge
towards better understanding sports media coverage
of big sports events [
81
]. Two papers used a case
study, such as one paper with a sample size of two, to
receive feedback on the applicability of a new VR
system for novice and expert basketball players [
58
] or
another paper that examines the dangers of fan tokens
by investigating a specific case [
82
]. Table 3 reports
the type of data collected in the empirical studies. Most
commonly, performance measures were collected,
such as Jensen et al. [
65
] investigating performance
improvement through scores by using an interactive
training game to practice ball handling skills while
simultaneously surveying the field. Reaction time
measurements are used similarly, often to examine
reaction time improvements, such as Amprasi et al.
[
66
] conducting reaction time measurements to
investigate whether children can improve their
selective attention with VR gaming for playing
volleyball [
66
]. To gain further insight into the user,
questionnaires, interviews, observations, expert
reviews and feedback were also conducted.
The participants attending the mentioned studies
were either children between seven and 17 years old,
which was the case in eight papers, or adults in ten
papers. In most of the analyzed papers, the gender of
the subjects was not reported. The reviewed papers
reporting gender either had mixed gender samples,
which was the case in seven studies, had only male
subjects in three studies or had only female subjects in
one study. In one mixed-gender study, the results were
even analyzed separately by gender. This
demonstrated that descriptive reaction times
improved more effectively in female participants than
in male participants after three months of reaction
training with Fitlights [
72
]. Although they studied the
differences between the genders descriptively, no
statistical tests were used to test the significance of the
gender difference. Overall, the reviewed papers paid
little attention to demographic differences such as age
and gender, although these differences could impact
on the effects studied, as implied by Badau et al. [
72
].
Further, the number of subjects varied between
the papers but was rather small in most cases. The
minimum number of participants was two in a case
study mentioned above [
59
], a high number of subjects
was 38 in a within-subjects experiment investigating
the improvement of basic knowledge on rugby
knowledge through standard instructions and video
gaming [
79
]. However, a lot of papers reported
between-subjects experiments with small sample sizes
per intervention group, such as Šlosar et al. [
68
]
examining the effect of additional tennis exergaming in
addition to standard tennis training with 63
participants split into four different groups. However,
there was one outlier having a sound sample size of
even 360 subjects, which were children of different
sports disciplines in the aforementioned
withinsubjects designed study on reaction training with
Fitlights by Badau et al. [
72
].
Five papers did focus on a rather single usage of a
gamified solution [
58,59,63,64,67
]. All other papers
concentrated on multiple-use scenarios of an
application to give the users time to experience the
application and improve in doing their respective
sports. Therefore, the authors gave the subjects a
variety of time spans between two weeks to over one
year, which was the case in a field experiment
examining exergaming improving reaction times in
tennis after the intervention of 6 months and an
additional follow-up test after one year [
68
]. In the
investigation of gamification in sports media coverage,
the authors even looked at the past four years [
81
].
There was a variety of different studies conducted
in the reviewed literature. Still, the authors of the
reviewed papers focused on developing gamified
applications or prototypes to enhance team
sportsrelated aspects. They conducted user testing over a
specific period to allow participants to experience the
training and gather performance data before and after
usage, in order to assess the effectiveness of the
application.
The findings of the empirical studies were various
and very specific as their research questions. The
findings of the empirical studies and relevant
prestudies are summed up in Table 4. The reviewed
papers indicate that gamification can be used in the
form of separate training units to improve the players'
performance in team sports, such as a specific gamified
soccer field installation with goal-like rebound
surfaces on each of the four sides of the playing field
[
65
]. Further, the empirical findings reported in the
analyzed papers indicate that commercial video games
can be used to improve specific cognitive skills, such as
using the eFootball PES computer game to improve
tactical thinking [
70,85
] or playing Rugby League Live
to learn the basics of rugby [
79,87
]. Gamified
technologies, such as Fitlights, are also used in
separate training units in other sports such as
Volleyball, Handball and Basketball [
72
]. Furthermore,
the analyzed studies indicate that specific
visualizations within implementations, such as visual
guidance for a perfect basketball throw [
58
], the
change to a third person perspective to better observe
and correct own behavior [
59
] or a celebrity avatar
[
63
], can support performance improvement.
Gamification also appear to be a viable approach to
assist athletes in preventing or recovering from
injuries; for example, one study indicates that back
pain can be cured more effectively with VR racing
game therapy than standard therapy [
78
]. However,
deploying gamification in sports also brings
challenges, such as the need to carefully design scoring
systems while maintaining the sports relevance so that
players are not only engaged to score but also perform
actions correctly [
67
]. Additionally, one study
mentioned that children prefer real-world activities
compared to the usage of exergames as a replacement
for common training, which was examined in context
of a commercial Wii Sports exergame solution [
62,88
].
5. Discussion
This paper investigates how game design features are
employed in gamified team sports, i.e. hybrid forms
combining digital games and team sports (RQ1) and
what is known about the benefits and challenges of
such hybrid forms (RQ2). For this purpose, we
conducted a scoping review with 28 paper and
generated a comprehensive overview of the current
state of research. This overview indicates that there is
a lot of potential for combining team sports and digital
games:
The screened literature demonstrates that team
sports can profit of including game design features in
the sports training to improve athletes' performances.
The reviewed papers used various innovative
technologies and concepts to gamify special training
units, commonly used in addition to standard training.
Purpose of such applications are mainly to improve
scoring techniques and other performance-related
aspects in sports, such as training of cognitive and
tactical skills or reaction time. Skills not directly
related to performance but still crucial in sports, such
as knowledge of sports values, can also be supported
by gamification.
In summary, this review demonstrates that
incorporating game design elements and principles in
team sports can positively influence behavioral
outcomes, such as sports performance. However, in
contrast to research on the effects of gamification in
other contexts [
8,11
], the existing body of literature on
gamified team sports barely reports details on the
psychological outcomes of using gamification in team
sports. The potential effects of gamification on the
motivation and enjoyment of athletes or social
dynamics in team sports still need to be investigated in
future research. However, since lack of enjoyment is
the primary reason for people quitting [
2,4
], research
should aim to advance our understanding of how
gamification can help restore and maintain enjoyment
in team sports and increase re-attendance and
retention of athletes.
Exploring the common potential of the two
disciplines of digital games and team sports to increase
user's motivation is a young field of research, which
noteworthy increased in the past years. This scoping
review presents the first comprehensive overview on
hybrid forms of digital games and team sports, which
is beneficial for comprehending how team sports can
profit from digital games in hybrid forms, and what
knowledge on its effectiveness has been gained so far.
In addition, this overview of the literature can offer
valuable information to guide future research
endeavors [
89
].
The literature contributing to this review overall
includes few empirical papers partly lacking high
quality studies. This reveals a high demand for further
research in the area of gamified team sports.
Therefore, we present an agenda for future research
on hybrid forms combining digital games and team
sports in the following sections. The agenda is divided
into thematic and methodological agendas, presenting
eight agenda points suggesting future directions for
research on hybrid forms of digital games and team
sports.
5.1. Thematic research agenda
Agenda point 1: More holistic gamification approaches
The body of literature provided insights into
gamified team sports, highlighting their focus on
isolated aspects of athlete training. For instance,
studies focused on enhancing the scoring accuracy in
basketball throws [
58
] or improving cognitive skills,
such as selective attention through exergame play
[
66
]. However, this research has largely been limited
to the improvement of individual components and
does not take into account the multi-faceted nature of
team sports. Moreover, these gamified approaches
have typically been deployed as separate gamified
training units, supplementing conventional training
sessions, such as additional reaction time units with
Fitlights [
72
] or additional ball handling units in a
specific gamified setup [
65
]. However, this approach
tends to overlook the complex dynamics inherent in
team sports, including factors such as team cohesion,
identity formation, intergroup relations, team
interaction and effective communication.
Furthermore, it is important to recognize that team
sports span various phases, including training,
matches, seasons, breaks, and preparation periods,
each with its own unique requirements. To truly
enhance the team sports experience, it is needed to
adopt a more holistic approach that seamlessly
integrates gamification into the overall training
program and, ideally, throughout the season. This
holistic approach aligns more organically with existing
team processes and will provide teams with practical
benefits in terms of performance and player
engagement.
Future research should investigate how
gamification can be integrated into team sports
accompanying the entire training and season
instead of adding extra gameful training sessions
covering just single aspects of the team sport.
Agenda point 2: Seamless integration of gamification
In addition, the development of new technologies
needed to support the integration of gamification into
training should be addressed in future research. The
current landscape of gamified training systems often
relies on technologies that are not conducive to
onfield or on-site club ground usage, such as VR Systems
enabling athletes to embody celebrity avatars for
training purposes [
63
] or computer and console games
aimed at enhancing tactical skills [
70,79
]. These
approaches require the deployment of computer pools
or special arrangements to allow all team members to
participate at the same time, which is a significant
barrier to seamlessly integrating gamification into
standard training sessions.
To address this challenge, researchers should
investigate and innovate in the realm of technological
solutions. This could involve the development and
utilization of wearable devices, smart clothing, or
sideline displays specifically designed to facilitate the
integration of gamified elements into training sessions
and other team activities. By exploring these
technological frontiers, future research can help
unlock innovative ways to tap into the potential of
gamification in team sports, ultimately improving both
individual skills and the overall team sports
experience.
Future research should explore innovative
technologies to seamlessly integrate gamification
into team sports training sessions, addressing the
limitations of existing systems.
Agenda point 3: Diversifying gamification
The implementations of gamification described in
the reviewed papers focus on diverse use cases and
stakeholders, such as improving throws or swings,
avoiding or recovering from injuries of players, and
referee training. However, the game design features
used are, on the whole, rather uninventive, using
themes and environments familiar from the sports
themselves, and earning points by scores visualized on
leaderboards, which can be also seen in various other
contexts [
8,90
]. Surprisingly only six papers
mentioned multiplayer approaches in their
implementations imitating the team sports character,
although the interplay of multiple players is the most
prominent feature of team sports. Almost all of these
multiplayer approaches use competitive game design
features, neglecting the cooperative team nature of the
sport. Only two systems were included in which
collaborative interactions would be possible caused by
the free play character of the interventions [
59,71
].
Based on the characteristics of the sport, team-based
features using cooperative or cooperative-competitive
features can also be beneficial to adapt the nature of
team sports, which should be investigated in future
studies. Additionally, other social-related features
supporting the social connections of the team should
be examined [
91
], as especially social relations is an
essential factor for performing leisure sports [
4
].
Furthermore, it is important to investigate the effects
of immersive game design features, such as avatars
and creative narratives, in order to tap the full
potential of game design elements in the context of
gamified sports to further enhance the positive effects
found [
91
].
Future research on gamified team sports
should seek to diversify the use of game design
features and concurrently develop an
understanding of what constitutes and creates
gameful and engaging experiences.
Agenda point 4: Exploring emerging forms of gamified
team sports
Beyond the reviewed literature, we see recent
trends that demonstrate an intriguing integration of
game design elements into traditional sports. For
example the King's League - a Spanish soccer league,
innovatively extends the conventional rules of soccer
by incorporating additional design elements of digital
games [
92
]. These modifications not only increase the
dynamics of the team sports but also increase the
entertainment value for the spectators. On the other
hand, new hybrid forms emerge that utilize recent
technological developments in the gaming industry to
merge the physical world of sports with the digital
world of gaming. For instance, HADO is a physical
esport where teams compete in person on a real
playing field by playing an augmented reality strategy
game that requires significant endurance from the
players [
93
]. Notably, HADO has established an active
league in Japan, demonstrating the public's interest in
such emerging hybrid sports experiences.
While our review indicates that these novel
applications that bridge the fields of digital games and
team sports are hardly covered in the existing body of
literature, scholars should put their attention on this
development to deepen our understanding of this
phenomenon and its potential social and economic
implications. In particular, research should aim to shed
light on the effects of these novel approaches on player
and spectator experience and their resulting potential
to increase people's engagement in team sports.
Further, by carefully investigating the specific design
patterns and socio-psychological dynamics of
innovative forms of gamified team sports, research can
gain valuable insights to inform practitioners about
how these approaches might influence the future of
sports and sports culture.
Future research should examine emerging
hybrid forms of digital games and team sports to
gain valuable insights into their social and
economic implications and their potential
disruptive dynamics for the sports culture.
Agenda point 5: Revealing adverse effects
The literature review revealed predominantly
positive effects of gamified team sports on behavioral
outcomes. While many studies highlight such benefits,
certain studies also report challenges, including
children’s preference for real-world sports over digital
activities [
62
] and the potential risks associated with
certain technologies, such as the addictive potential of
fan tokens [
82
]. In addition, incorporating game design
elements into team sports applications can pose a risk
by shifting the users’ focus to rewards rather than to a
proper execution of sports-related activities. Thus,
maintaining the sports relevance of an application
while integrating gamification features and mechanics
was found to be critical to effectiveness. [
67
]. While in
other contexts, such as education, previous research
that systematically analyzed the potential negative
effects of using gamification found that gamification
can reduce the effectiveness and user performance in
specific activities [
94,95
], there is also clear relevance
to investigating potential negative consequences of
gamifying team sports. This is particularly important
given the risk of severe consequences, such as injury,
in sports.
Future research should examine potential
adverse effects of using gamification in team
sports to support the development of successful,
safe, and effective approaches.
5.2. Methodological research agenda
Agenda point 6: Conduct solid empirical studies
The majority of all studies reported positive effects
of hybrid forms of digital games and team sports,
indicating a great potential for team sports. However,
many papers conducted experiments with a small
sample size for the empirical research designs used.
This might be attributed to the novelty of the research
field. For this reason, the results of such studies should
be taken with the necessary caution. At the same time,
the number of male participants exceeds that of the
number of female subjects clearly, without knowing
the exact number due to the lack of description in some
studies. Most studies did not include data from female
participants at all, which we know from three papers
mentioning only male participants out of 11 papers
mentioning the gender of their participants. In
contrast, only one study included only female
participants. However, previous research suggests
that the perceptions towards and effectiveness of a
gamification approach strongly depends on users,
their characteristics, and their individual goals [
90,96
].
In the literature, small studies with a specific user
group have provided quick insights into a
phenomenon, but have limitations. Subsequent large
studies with a more diverse user group are necessary
to ensure the reliability and generalizability of the
results. Even deeper insight and understanding can be
gained by comparing results across different user
demographics.
Further studies should conduct appropriate
empirical evaluations to gain knowledge about the
actual effects of gamified team sports. In
particular, studies should draw on sufficient
samples and reflect on potential demographic and
cultural differences.
Agenda point 7: Understanding differences in
gamification design
Thirty-eight of the reviewed studies contained
empirical results on the effects of gamification in the
context of team sports or alternative contexts using
elements related to team sports. Our overview
indicates that gamification tends to motivate users and
can even lead to improved performance, which is
consistent with findings on gamification in different
contexts [
8,97,98
]. Multiplayer modes created through
cooperative, competitive, or cooperative-competitive
features have been examined as gamification features
in a number of studies, indicating that multiplayer
modes are an engaging factor [
25,99
]. However, these
results of the reviewed papers are still too vague to
derive specific design recommendations for gamifying
team sports. Most of the studies reviewed examined
only the overall results of using gamification, rather
than isolating and studying individual game mechanics
or measuring the corresponding effects separately.
Throughout gamification research, this is a common
challenge [
8
]. However, to capture the full range of
effects, it is also necessary to study the interaction
between different game design elements, as isolating
individual game elements may not reflect the
realworld effects of complex gamification approaches. As a
result, current research provides limited insights into
the complex interplay of different factors that
influence motivation and performance in the context
of digital games and team sport. We therefore believe
that a careful and systematic empirical evaluation of
the effects of game design features, psychological and
behavioral outcomes, and the differences between
different designs would be beneficial, to identify which
element actually causes the observed effects.
In future research, game design elements
should be investigated in isolation and in
conjunction with each other to derive concrete
design recommendations.
Agenda point 8: Understand the psychological dynamics
and outcomes of gamifying team sports
Research on gamification in various contexts, such
as education, health and crowdsourcing shows that
gamification is a multifaceted approach. Gamification
can be beneficial in cognitive, social and emotional
aspects which can positively influence the user's
motivation and thus the behavior related to an activity
[
8
]. Our scoping review revealed that existing research
on gamified team sports primarily focuses on
improving individual athletic performance, which is
undoubtedly a crucial aspect for the team to progress
and succeed in their discipline. However, focusing
solely on performance, and thus behavioral outcomes,
neglects other potentially relevant factors that engage
people to participate in team sports, such as the
enjoyment of the activity itself and the interaction with
peers. Such a performance-oriented perspective may
hinder the generation of innovations to counteract the
increasing disinterest of people in team sports,
especially in leisure sports [
5
]. Therefore, future
research should consider investigating the cognitive,
social and emotional effects of gamification in team
sports in more detail [
4
].
Further studies on gamified team sports should
focus not only on performance measures but also
investigate cognitive, social and emotional
outcomes of using gamification in team sports to
tap the full potential of gamification and digital
games.
5.3. Limitations
Limitations of this study include a focus on
Englishlanguage articles only, which omits non-English
literature that could be considered in future reviews of
hybrid forms of digital games and team sports.
Additionally, despite the use of different search terms,
it is possible that studies using different terminology
or examining different types of team sports were not
included in our search. Nevertheless, the diverse
findings from this scoping review can still significantly
enhance our understanding of the application of game
design features in team sports.