The Sports Analytics and Statistics Laboratory (SASL) is a part of the Department of Statistics in the College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Virginia, and is the home for analytics and statistics within UVA Athletics’ Sports Science Institute. SASL serves as a hub for various activities related to education, research, and promotion of sports analytics and statistics. Technological advances have created an explosion of complex data spanning multiple statistical domains (high dimensional time series, network, and spatiotemporal data to name a few), but have left a dearth of statistical methods that are critical for analysis. In addition, demand for statisticians in the sports domain has dramatically increased due to a recognition of the contributions of statistical analysis to both sports strategy and performance (analytics) and injury prevention and recovery.
SASL faculty work closely with departments across grounds at UVA to identify and fill gaps in statistical theory and methodology that will help advance the state of the art in sports related fields. In addition, SASL offers courses in sports analytics and statistics, and runs collaborative sports-related projects-- frequently through the Sports Science Institute-- that are suitable for students at the undergraduate, masters, and PhD levels. Through high-quality collaboration and education opportunities SASL produces graduates who are highly competitive in job markets related to sports analytics and statistics.
SASL also coordinates several activities, including a reading/working group (WAR), a seminar/webinar series (FTW), and an annual sports analytics conference (SCORES). We are excited to welcome you to SASL. Please peruse our website for more information and to learn how to get involved. We have opportunities for students of all levels, faculty, and professionals. And feel free to contact us with any questions!