The dominance index
The dominance index answers a different question from the performance index: is this player outgrowing his environment? It rates output without accounting for the level of his league or team. A player dominating a modest division therefore posts a high figure, where the performance index would bring him back to the real level of the competition.
Why two ratings rather than one
The two indices are read together and say opposite things, which is precisely the point. Performance places a player on the world scale. Dominance says whether he did everything his context allowed.
A player with very high dominance and average performance is the classic profile of someone who has outgrown his league. That is often where the best value on the market sits: a club recruiting one level up pays less than for a player already established at the target level.
What it is used for in recruitment
It feeds detection in the divisions recruitment departments follow poorly, for lack of time or network. A sporting director looking for a player able to step up naturally starts with the strongest dominance figures in lower divisions, then checks with the performance index that the absolute level remains credible.
It also helps read a failed transfer after the fact. A player who dominated at his former club and struggles at the new one has not necessarily regressed: he may have been signed on his dominance alone, with nobody weighing the gap between the two competitions.
What dominance does not tell you
High dominance in a weak division says nothing about the real level of the player. Taken alone it is misleading, and that is the most common misreading: it measures a gap with an environment, not an absolute value.
It also does not predict the ability to adapt to a higher level, which depends on things no statistic captures: tempo, physical demands, life context, settling time.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between the dominance index and the performance index?
The performance index incorporates league and team level, which makes it comparable worldwide. The dominance index does not: it measures the gap between a player and his immediate environment. The two are meant to be read together.
How do you spot a player ready to move up a level?
The most useful signal is very high dominance combined with a decent performance figure for that division, in a player who is still young. It is never a guarantee, but it makes a good starting point for a shortlist.