Money can't buy you gold

They say money can’t buy you happiness, but I’m not too sure that everyone in elite team sport agrees with that. Over the years, sports such as football and rugby have become increasingly more driven by money and often move away from the core values that the team were built upon[1]. And although these teams with high-tech analysis equipment and training facilities do perform well, they’re not always leaps and bounds ahead of a smaller, less equipped opponent.

Sometimes, there are far simpler (and cost-effective) ways to improve team performance.

“… if you think and achieve as a team, the individual accolades will take care of themselves. Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships[2].” - Michael Jordan

Figure 1. Photograph of Michael Jordan and Dennis Rodman.[3]

Like the Chicago Bulls respected Dennis Rodman's off-piste choices of style and pre-match activity (wrestling with Hulk Hogan being one of them[4]), it is important that you understand and trust your team. Whether it be a national team striving for World Cup success or a local club wanting to be promoted to the next league, this could make all the difference.

So, how can we improve team performance?

• Do activities together

Studies have found that adventure-based activities such as water sports (like sailing), mountain expeditions, camping, or helping the local community can help improve team cohesion[5].

Activities to improve team cohesion seem to need to:

1) be in a new setting and

2) have some element of risk or uncertainty.

These characteristics tend to help people take on the group goals and move them away from thinking about themselves as separate individuals. It also helps them explore new ideas and perspectives – improving managing of potential changes, adjustments, or compromises.

REMEMBER: tailor the activity to your group – yes you want a level of risk, but don’t take them up into the mountains for a few days of climbing when you have no experience! Think of activities that are exciting but have a low risk of potential physical or psychological harm. What’s most appropriate for you as a group?

(Also, don’t be alarmed if you are noticing that male teams don’t seem to be bonding as quickly. Studies have suggested that females generally value creating social cohesion which then improves performance, male teams tend to do the reverse[6]. This may help you think about the best time to carry out the activity and whether it may be more beneficial nearer the start of the season for females compared to males).

• Create a group identity through conversations about goals and values

Research suggests that social identity can increase self-esteem[7] (an influencing factor for well-being[8],[9]) and performance[10]. Teams that don’t show a group identity are quick to point fingers and blame individuals or sub-groups when they have a poor performance[11].

Try setting a time to meet as a team and discuss what you all think should be the group goals and values – take the time to go round and hear everyone’s opinions, allow open communication without judgement[12]. Chartered sport and exercise psychologist Hannah Brooks has spoken about giving each person a few poker chips at the start of the meeting that they 'cash in' when they speak - a great way to make sure everyone gets a word in[13]. Creating goals and values that everyone has a say in not only helps people align with them better, but feel more connected with the team and strive to achieve those goals[14].

It has been found that coach justice and support can influence team identity. Being a coach that values treating everyone equally (or showing transparency about why someone may be treated favourably, i.e., due to their personal needs) and supporting everyone sharing their feelings and ideas about the team can significantly improve the group identity too[15].

• Establish group roles

Within every team you will get the formation of formal and informal social roles[16]. Formal roles refer to specific job titles like captain, goalkeeper, or welfare officer and informal roles are more like descriptions of traits such as ‘the one who organises the socials’ or ‘the group comedian’.

When people aren’t sure of their roles within the team, cohesion decreases[17], anxiety increases[18], and people seem more likely to question whether the coach is competent at their job[19].

Conversations about the formal and informal roles in a team can help people feel less dispensable and more valued for their contribution to the group. Deciding and accepting roles have seen increases in group harmony and positive feelings towards the team, as well as better mental health for individuals within the team!

• Be aware of cliques and know how to manage them

This is a big one.

Cliques are inevitable in team environments and it’s foolish to think that everyone in the team can be equally connected.

Identify the cliques and ask yourself – are they exclusive? (do they exclude others and make people feel lonely or left out?) or are they inclusive? (are they supportive and encouraging?)[16].

It’s easy to think that all cliques will be exclusive and make people feel left out, but this isn’t the case! Inclusive cliques can serve to support not only the individuals within the sub-group, but those outside the group as well. They are perceived to increase team cohesion, as they reduce ‘clashes’ between players who may not get on that well by allowing them to spend time with people they relate to more and are friendlier with[20].

An important aspect of creating a strong team environment can be conversing about the natural formation of subgroups within the team and just asking them to be empathetic to one another. The issues come when the subgroup becomes more important to individuals than the whole group is, i.e., if after a loss, people would rather talk exclusively in a subgroup than discuss the match as a team. These kinds of situations are important to look out for. They can be improved by encouraging open communication and really allowing everyone to voice their opinions after a difficult game. By reducing any stigma about showing emotions (but being careful not to encourage finger pointing and blaming culture) hopefully these kinds of clique situations, that are often seen as the most damaging, can be avoided.

It is also important to try not to control or force interactions. Research suggests authentic relationships are the best way to improve team performance, therefore being split up from your friends or forced to include someone new can be difficult to handle[21]. Instead, it’s important that the team values are respected. If exclusive cliques begin to cause issues within the team, those involved need to be gently reminded of the team values and led back to aligning with them.

Figure 2. A mind map of the factors affecting social environments in team sports[16].

So, here are 4 things you can do to improve team success in team sports, there are more so look into those if you want to! These simple team building suggestions can make a huge difference to your team performance. Meetings, activities, and small shifts in culture can have a dramatic impact. So feel free to use my infographic and give these a try - and let me know how things go!

Best of luck.

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[4] Biography | Dennis Rodman [Internet]. Dennisrodman.com. [cited 28 November 2021]. Available from: https://dennisrodman.com/biography/.

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[11] Zucchermaglio C. Who wins and who loses: The rhetorical manipulation of social identities in a soccer team. Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice. 2005 Dec;9(4):219. [12] Evans AL, Slater MJ, Turner MJ, Barker JB. Using personal-disclosure mutual-sharing to enhance group functioning in a professional soccer academy. The Sport Psychologist. 2013 Sep 1;27(3):233-43.

[13] Gilmore H, Olusoga P. 1.07 How do we set goals that really stick? with Charlotte Hincliffe and Hannah Brooks. Eighty Percent Mental podcast. 2020 Oct 6 [cited on 2021 Nov 29]. Available from: https://eightypercentmental.com/category/the-podcast/series-1-the-podcast/

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[16] Martin L, Bruner M, Eys M, Spink K. The social environment in sport: Selected topics. International review of sport and exercise psychology. 2014 Jan 1;7(1):87-105.

[17] Bosselut G, McLaren CD, Eys MA, Heuzé JP. Reciprocity of the relationship between role ambiguity and group cohesion in youth interdependent sport. Psychology of Sport and Exercise. 2012 May 1;13(3):341-8.

[18] Beauchamp MR, Bray SR, Eys MA, Carron AV. The effect of role ambiguity on competitive state anxiety. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. 2003 Mar 1;25(1):77-92.

[19] Bosselut G, Heuzé JP, Eys MA, Fontayne P, Sarrazin P. Athletes’ perceptions of role ambiguity and coaching competency in sport teams: A multilevel analysis. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. 2012 Jun 1;34(3):345-64.

[20] Martin LJ, Wilson J, Evans MB, Spink KS. Cliques in sport: Perceptions of intercollegiate athletes. The Sport Psychologist. 2015 Mar 1;29(1):82-95.

[21] Wagstaff CR, Martin LJ, Thelwell RC. Subgroups and cliques in sport: A longitudinal case study of a rugby union team. Psychology of Sport and Exercise. 2017 May 1;30:164-72.