football-data

SKILL.md

Football Data

Before writing queries, consult references/api-reference.md for endpoints, ID conventions, and data shapes.

Setup
Before first use, check if the CLI is available:

which sports-skills || pip install sports-skills

If pip install fails (package not found or Python version error), install from GitHub:

pip install git+https://github.com/machina-sports/sports-skills.git

The package requires Python 3.10+. If your default Python is older, use a specific version:

python3 --version  # check version
# If < 3.10, try: python3.12 -m pip install sports-skills
# On macOS with Homebrew: /opt/homebrew/bin/python3.12 -m pip install sports-skills

No API keys required.

Quick Start

Prefer the CLI — it avoids Python import path issues:

sports-skills football get_daily_schedule
sports-skills football get_season_standings --season_id=premier-league-2025

Python SDK (alternative):

from sports_skills import football

standings = football.get_season_standings(season_id="premier-league-2025")
schedule = football.get_daily_schedule()

CRITICAL: Before Any Query

CRITICAL: Before calling any data endpoint, verify:

Season ID is derived from get_current_season(competition_id="...") — never hardcoded.

Team ID is verified via search_team(query="...") if only a name is provided.

get_event_xg and get_event_players_statistics (with xG) are only called for top-5 leagues (EPL, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1).

get_season_leaders and get_missing_players are only called for Premier League seasons (season_id must start with premier-league-).

Choosing the Season

Derive the current year from the system prompt's date (e.g., currentDate: 2026-02-16 → current year is 2026).

If the user specifies a season, use it as-is.

If the user says "current", "latest", or doesn't specify: Call get_current_season(competition_id="...") to get the active season_id. Do NOT guess or hardcode the year.

Season format: Always {league-slug}-{year} (e.g., "premier-league-2025" for the 2025-26 season). The year is the start year of the season, not the end year.

MLS exception: MLS runs spring-fall within a single calendar year. Use get_current_season(competition_id="mls").

Commands

Command
Description

get_current_season
Detect current season for a competition

get_competitions
List available competitions with current season info

get_competition_seasons
Available seasons for a competition

get_season_schedule
Full season match schedule

get_season_standings
League table for a season

get_season_leaders
Top scorers/leaders (Premier League only)

get_season_teams
Teams in a season

search_team
Search for a team by name

search_player
Search for a player by name

get_team_profile
Basic team info (no squad/roster)

get_daily_schedule
All matches for a date across all leagues

get_event_summary
Match summary with scores

get_event_lineups
Match lineups

get_event_statistics
Match team statistics

get_event_timeline
Match timeline (goals, cards, subs)

get_team_schedule
Schedule for a specific team

get_head_to_head
UNAVAILABLE — returns empty

get_event_xg
xG data (top 5 leagues only)

get_event_players_statistics
Player-level match stats with optional xG

get_missing_players
Injured/doubtful players (Premier League only)

get_season_transfers
Transfer history via Transfermarkt

get_player_season_stats
Player season stats via ESPN

get_player_profile
Player profile (FPL and/or Transfermarkt)

See references/api-reference.md for full parameter lists, return shapes, and data coverage table.

Examples

Example 1: Premier League table
User says: "Show me the Premier League table"
Actions:

Call get_current_season(competition_id="premier-league") to get the current season_id

Call get_season_standings(season_id=<season_id from step 1>)
Result: Standings table with position, team, played, won, drawn, lost, GD, points

Example 2: Match report
User says: "How did Arsenal vs Liverpool go?"
Actions:

Call get_daily_schedule() or get_team_schedule(team_id="359") to find the event_id

Call get_event_summary(event_id="...") for the score

Call get_event_statistics(event_id="...") for possession, shots, etc.

Call get_event_xg(event_id="...") for xG comparison (EPL — top 5 only)
Result: Match report with scores, key stats, and xG

Example 3: Team deep dive
User says: "Deep dive on Chelsea's recent form"
Actions:

Call search_team(query="Chelsea") → team_id=363, competition=premier-league

Call get_team_schedule(team_id="363", competition_id="premier-league") → find recent closed events

For each recent match, call in parallel: get_event_xg, get_event_statistics, get_event_players_statistics

Call get_missing_players(season_id=<season_id>) → filter Chelsea's injured/doubtful players
Result: xG trend across matches, key player stats, and injury report

Example 4: Player market value
User says: "What's Saka's market value?"
Actions:

Call get_player_profile(tm_player_id="433177") for Transfermarkt data

Optionally add fpl_id for FPL stats
Result: Market value, value history, and transfer history

Example 5: Non-PL club
User says: "Tell me about Corinthians"
Actions:

Call search_team(query="Corinthians") → team_id=874, competition=serie-a-brazil

Call get_team_schedule(team_id="874", competition_id="serie-a-brazil") for fixtures

Pick a recent match and call get_event_timeline(event_id="...") for goals, cards, subs
Result: Fixtures, timeline events (note: xG, FPL stats, and season leaders NOT available for Brazilian Serie A)

Commands that DO NOT exist — never call these

get_standings — the correct command is get_season_standings (requires season_id).

get_live_scores — not available. Use get_daily_schedule() for today's matches.

get_team_squad / get_team_roster — get_team_profile does NOT return players. Use get_season_leaders for PL player IDs, then get_player_profile.

get_transfers — the correct command is get_season_transfers (requires season_id + tm_player_ids).

get_match_results / get_match — use get_event_summary with an event_id.

get_player_stats — use get_event_players_statistics for match-level stats, or get_player_profile for career data.

get_scores / get_results — use get_event_summary with an event_id.

get_fixtures — use get_daily_schedule for today's matches or get_season_schedule for a full season.

get_league_table — use get_season_standings with a season_id.

If a command is not in the Commands table above, it does not exist. Do not try commands not listed.

Error Handling

When a command fails (wrong event_id, missing data, network error, etc.), do not surface the raw error to the user. Instead:

Catch it silently — treat the failure as an exploratory miss.

Try alternatives — if an event_id returns no data, call get_daily_schedule() or get_team_schedule() to discover the correct ID.

Only report failure after exhausting alternatives — use a clean message (e.g., "I couldn't find that match — can you confirm the teams or date?").

Troubleshooting

Error: sports-skills command not found
Cause: Package not installed
Solution: Run pip install sports-skills. If not on PyPI, install from GitHub: pip install git+https://github.com/machina-sports/sports-skills.git

Error: ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'sports_skills'
Cause: Package not installed or path issue
Solution: Install the package. Prefer the CLI over Python imports to avoid path issues

Error: get_season_leaders or get_missing_players returns empty for a non-PL league
Cause: These commands only work for Premier League; they silently return empty for other leagues
Solution: Check the Data Coverage table in references/api-reference.md. For other leagues, use get_event_players_statistics for player data

Error: get_team_profile returns no players
Cause: This command does not return squad rosters — this is expected behavior
Solution: For PL teams, use get_season_leaders to find player FPL IDs, then get_player_profile(fpl_id="...")

Error: Wrong season_id format
Cause: Season ID must follow the {league-slug}-{year} format
Solution: Use get_current_season(competition_id="...") to discover the correct format. Example: "premier-league-2025", not "2025-2026" or "EPL-2025"

Error: No xG data for a recent match
Cause: Understat data may lag 24-48 hours after a match ends
Solution: If get_event_xg returns empty for a recent top-5 match, retry later. Only available for EPL, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1

Error: Team or event ID unknown
Cause: ID was guessed instead of looked up
Solution: Use search_team(query="team name") to find team IDs, or get_daily_schedule / get_season_schedule to find event IDs. Never guess IDs.