Castrol Launches Ranking System

In support of its Football World Cup sponsorship, Castrol has created the first ‘official’ ranking system for football players, based on the performance of every football player across Europe’s top five leagues.

This marks the first credible ranking system in this vein, created through the application of analysis, technology and innovation. The scheme measures every pass, tackle and single move of over 2,000 players and games every year.

The Castrol Index tracks each move on the field and assesses whether it has a positive or negative impact on a team’s ability to score or concede a goal. A key factor for all areas of performance in the Castrol Index is which zone on the pitch the action takes place. Players receive points for each successful pass they complete but the number of points awarded depends on which zones the ball is passed from and received in.

The Castrol Rankings are updated on a rolling monthly basis, with the first being published to launch the system itself.

According to the Castrol Rankings for October 2009, Thierry Henry of Barcelona is the best player in the world, with his teammate Lionel Messi following up in second place.