Soccer Slang: Field Tilt

Diego Simone & Atlético Madrid are known for tilting things their way. Photo: Getty Images

Soccer may ultimately be about putting the ball in the net — but the modern game is overflowing with jargon.

As tactics become increasingly shaped by data and analytics, players and coaches have developed an ever-evolving technical language — one that NYC Footy’s Soccer Slang series is here to decode.

From Gegenpressing to The Rest Defence, we translate the phrases that make contemporary soccer sound more like science fiction.

This week, we unleash our first mathematical formula — exciting!

Field Tilt

We’ve all been there: sitting in the pub, gingerly picking through the bones of a frustrating defeat (preferably while chomping on dry roasted peanuts).

You and your teammates have unanimously decided that you ‘murdered’ your opponents, but rather depressingly, you can’t actually prove it. That’s where the Field Tilt metric could come in handy.

Interpreting who is truly in control of a match is tricky, and traditional stats like possession percentages lack nuance. A team might monopolize the ball yet pose little attacking threat, while their opponents look dangerous every time they venture forward.

Wouldn't it be great if there was a metric that goes beyond possession to reveal territorial control and attacking intent? There is: Field Tilt — and it even has its own formula.

Field Tilt (%) = (Team’s Final Third Passes ÷ Total Final Third Passes in the Match) × 100

If, for example:

Team A completes 70 passes in the final third

Team B completes 30 passes in the final third

Then:

Team A’s Field Tilt = (70 ÷ (70+30)) × 100 = 70%

Team B’s Field Tilt = (30 ÷ (70+30)) × 100 = 30%

These numbers reveal how much of the attacking territory each team controlled.

Let’s consider a practical example using a successful team in the Atlético Madrid mould. Low possession but still potent in attack, Diego Simeone’s Atleti are masters at soaking up pressure before delivering a sucker punch.

Even with just 35% possession, a team like this might still post a 45–50% Field Tilt — because when they do have the ball, they are probing dangerous areas.

So, Field Tilt — definitely one to think about (preferably while chomping on dry roasted peanuts)!