This term is widely used in football, so it deserves clear explanation.
In the final stretch of La Liga Santander, everything can still be decided: the title, the teams that secure Champions League spots, those aiming for the Europa League, the group contending for the Conference League, and the clubs facing relegation to La Liga SmartBank.
With many puzzles to solve in these closing days, a factor worth highlighting is the well known target average that fans and analysts often discuss.
Right now, given how the race stands, it seems unlikely the champion will rely on it, since Barcelona leads Real Madrid by a dozen points. Yet the remaining objectives are likely to hinge on this very detail.
What does target average mean?
Goal average is a method used in football to break ties when teams finish with the same points in a competition, helping decide who sits higher in the table.
It is interesting that the English origin of the term describes the average of goals scored and conceded. It has also served to tilt a tie in favor of one side when a match or set of matches would otherwise be equal on points.
Example of goal difference between two teams
If two teams end La Liga with identical points, the head to head results become decisive. If team A defeats team B 2-0 in the first encounter and team B wins 1-0 in the rematch, team A would lead on head to head points and, more importantly, would possess a better goal difference between the two matches. This makes goal difference feel like a miniature Champions League tie within the league season.
When the two clubs also score the same number of goals across both games, the tie is resolved by the larger goal difference taking into account all goals scored and conceded throughout the competition.
For illustration, consider team A that finishes with 80 goals scored and 50 conceded over 38 league matches, yielding a goal difference of +30. Team B, meanwhile, finishes with 62 goals scored and 20 conceded, for a goal difference of +42. In that scenario, team B would hold the advantage via the superior goal difference.
If the goal differences are still level after tallying all 38 fixtures, the regulations state that the team with the most goals scored during the season will be crowned champion in La Liga.
Tie between more than two teams
When a tie involves more than two clubs, the resolution follows a structured process:
a) The best head to head score among the tied teams, calculated from matches played between those clubs as if the others were not involved.
b) If the head to head points are equal, the team with the superior goal difference in those head to head matches is favored, considering only the games between the tied clubs.
c) If still tied, the overall goal difference across all league matches is used, with preference given to the club that has the higher goal difference.
d) As a last resort and in line with the regulations for the top divisions as applicable, if the final tie cannot be broken by the above rules, the top ranked club is determined according to the fair play standings established at the start of each season by the competition organizers, which publish them through official channels.
The rules described above are applied in order and with specificity. If any rule settles the outcome for a club, it is applied to the others involved, and the remaining ties are resolved accordingly.
Notes about interpretation and application of these rules are provided by football governing bodies and widely reported by sports outlets such as Goal, which explain how the league handles ties and the interplay between direct matches and season totals.
Source attribution: Goal