How to Read Your Scorza Sprint Map: Direction, Distance & Intensity Decoded
The sprint map is the most under-read screen in the Scorza app. Here's how to actually use it — direction, distance, intensity — and what each pattern says about your game.
May 2026
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7 min read
The short answer
The Scorza sprint map shows every sprint effort from your match as a line overlaid on a pitch diagram. Line direction shows which way you were moving. Line length shows how far the burst covered. Line colour shows the intensity band — low (16.2–19.7 km/h), medium (19.7–25.1 km/h) or high (25.1–43.2 km/h). Together, it tells you more about your physical contribution than a sprint count alone.
Anatomy of the Scorza sprint map
Where the heatmap shows everywhere you were, the sprint map shows only your sprint moments — runs above 16.2 km/h (4.5 m/s), the entry point into the low sprint band. Everything below that threshold is filtered out. What you're left with is a clean visual of every burst that mattered physically.
Each sprint appears as a directional line on the pitch overlay:
Line direction: Which way you were moving during the burst. A line pointing toward the opposition goal is an attacking run. A line pointing back toward your own goal is a recovery sprint. Sideways lines show lateral movements or diagonal tracking runs.
Line length: Proportional to distance covered. A short line is a 10–15 metre burst. A long line is a 25–40 metre run. Most football sprints will appear as short to medium lines.
Line colour: Intensity band. Low-intensity sprints (16.2–19.7 km/h) appear in one colour. Medium sprints (19.7–25.1 km/h) in another. High-intensity sprints — your top-speed efforts above 25.1 km/h — appear in the brightest, most saturated colour.
Reading direction: what every line tells you about your role
Direction is the most tactically rich information in the sprint map. It answers the question: when you were running hard, which way were you going?
A sprint map full of forward-pointing lines says you were a forward-running threat — making runs in behind, pressing high, arriving late into the box. A sprint map with a significant number of backward-pointing lines tells a different story: you were doing a lot of recovery work, tracking back, covering for teammates.
Most midfield and defensive sprint maps will show a mix. What you're looking for is whether the balance reflects your role. A winger who mostly has backward-pointing lines was either chasing their defensive duties all match or was limited to a defensive role by the team's shape. A striker with mostly backward lines may have been pressing extremely hard — or the team was without the ball for most of the match.
Lateral and diagonal lines show transitions — the cross-field runs and diagonal tracking bursts that don't show up in distance stats but are physically expensive and tactically important.
Reading intensity: not all sprints are equal
The three colour bands distinguish between a deliberate burst, genuine high-speed running, and a fully maximal effort. A burst at 18 km/h is a low-band sprint. A burst at 22 km/h is medium-band — committed high-speed running. A burst at 28 km/h is high-band — the kind that creates goal chances, wins foot races, or catches opponents who've stopped sprinting.
Look at the distribution across bands. A sprint map dominated by low-band lines with very few medium or high-band efforts suggests you were working hard but rarely hitting your ceiling. That could mean the match context didn't demand it — or it could mean your top-end speed needs work, or you fatigued too quickly to produce maximal efforts.
A healthy sprint map shows a spread across all three bands — a base of low-band efforts, a meaningful chunk in the medium band, and at least a handful of high-band lines scattered through both halves of the match.
Reading distance: how far were you going when you went hard?
Most football sprints are short. A line covering 10–15 metres is normal. Lines of 25–35 metres represent a sustained burst — a run in behind, a full recovery sprint from midfield, a pressing run that covered real ground before the player was closed down.
If your sprint map is dominated by very short lines — 5–10 metres — you're making lots of quick bursts but not sustaining them. That can be positional (your role demands quick accelerations, not long runs) or it can signal that you're gassing out before you complete the effort.
Cross-reference with your position. A striker should have some longer forward lines (runs in behind) and shorter lines (pressing bursts). A full-back should have longer lines in both directions — attacking overlaps forward, recovery sprints back. A central midfielder's lines are typically shorter and spread in multiple directions.
Common patterns by position
Winger
Long forward lines in the wide channel on your side — runs in behind the full-back, attacking overlaps, breaks after winning the ball. Shorter lines showing the press and the recovery. The sprint map should be biased toward one side of the pitch. If it's spread centrally, you were playing narrower than the position usually demands.
Box-to-box midfielder
Short to medium lines in multiple directions, spread across the central zone of the pitch. Some forward — arriving late, pressing the opposition's defensive midfielder. Some backward — recovering after turnovers. A mix of lateral lines from covering ground across the middle. The sprint map of a good box-to-box midfielder looks busy and varied.
Full-back
Long lines in one wide channel, in both directions. Forward: the attacking overlap or underlap run. Backward: the recovery sprint when caught high and the ball turns over. The contrast between the forward and backward lines tells you how often you were caught out of position.
Striker
Short to medium forward lines — runs in behind the defensive line, pressing runs onto the centre-backs. Some diagonal lines from checking runs and movement between defenders. Very few backward lines in a well-functioning team. A striker with many backward-facing lines was doing a lot of pressing work in a high press system — physically expensive, worth tracking.
How to spot fatigue across the 90 minutes
A well-distributed sprint map should show high-intensity lines appearing throughout the match — not just in the first 45 minutes. If your second half is visibly sparse compared to your first half, you faded. That's not a judgment — it's information.
Look at the density of lines in the first half versus the second. A meaningful drop in sprint count after 60–65 minutes is common in players with a strong aerobic base but limited repeat sprint training. A drop that starts as early as 45–50 minutes suggests the aerobic base itself needs work.
"A sparse second half on your sprint map isn't a bad game. It's a training plan."
Using the sprint map to plan your training
The sprint map tells you exactly what to work on. Use it this way:
Low total sprint count: Your body isn't producing enough high-intensity efforts. Add short sprint intervals and small-sided game training to your week.
Low sprint count in the second half specifically: Your aerobic base or repeat sprint ability is limiting you. Add longer interval sessions — 400m reps at match pace, 3–4 sets.
Few medium and high-band lines vs many low-band lines: You're not reaching your ceiling. Add short maximal efforts — 20m × 8 at 100%, full recovery between reps.
All your lines in one direction: Your role in that match was very specific. Worth checking whether that matches your tactical brief, or whether something in the team shape is limiting your movement.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Scorza sprint map show?
Every sprint effort from your match, shown as directional lines on a pitch overlay. Line direction shows which way you were moving. Line length shows how far the burst covered. Line colour shows the intensity band — low (16.2–19.7 km/h), medium (19.7–25.1 km/h) or high (25.1–43.2 km/h).
How do I know if my sprint map is good?
Depends on your position. A winger should have long forward lines in their wide channel. A box-to-box midfielder should have varied lines across the central zone. A full-back should have forward and backward lines on one side.
What does it mean if my sprint map has lots of backward lines?
You were doing a lot of recovery work — tracking back, chasing behind the play, covering defensive positions. That's physically expensive and often means the team was defending for significant periods.
Why is my sprint map sparse in the second half?
You fatigued. The most common cause is insufficient repeat sprint training — your body can produce high-intensity efforts but can't recover fast enough between them over 90 minutes. Add short sprint interval sessions to your midweek training.
How is the sprint map different from the heatmap?
The heatmap shows everywhere you were — all 90 minutes of GPS data. The sprint map shows only your sprint efforts above 16.2 km/h. The heatmap tells you your positional profile. The sprint map tells you your physical contribution.
See every sprint from your next match.
The Scorza sprint map turns your Apple Watch or Garmin GPS into a full sprint analysis — direction, distance, intensity, across every minute of the game.