Are more recent games treated differently from games from two or three years ago?
Recent games are weighted more heavily, but the extent to which this is true depends on the number of competitive games a particular team has played. For instance, in the case of Spain, which plays competitive matches very frequently, the algorithm sets a cutoff point of about 3.5 years: A game played 3.5 years ago is weighted at 0; a game played yesterday is weighted at 1, with a straight-line adjustment in between. (So, for example, a game played 1.5 years ago is weighted at about 0.6.
Recent games are weighted more heavily, but the extent to which this is true depends on the number of competitive games a particular team has played. For instance, in the case of Spain, which plays competitive matches very frequently, the algorithm sets a cutoff point of about 3.5 years: A game played 3.5 years ago is weighted at 0; a game played yesterday is weighted at 1, with a straight-line adjustment in between.
