Highlights • A definition for the term "coach`s eye" is formulated through a qualitative review process. • An overview about the actual research state of the "coach's eye" is given based on the definition. • Coach`s eye is linked to a model (iCodes) and provide theory guided research. Talent selection has become an integral part of many nations` athlete development systems. In this context, a coach often serves as a decision-maker, selecting or deselecting athletes based on their intuition, a phenomenon that has generally come to be referred to as "coach`s eye". However, there is no consistent operational definition of this term. To this end, we reviewed prior work using the term "coach`s eye" as reflecting the process of coaches assessing and selecting athletes during talent selection scenarios. Based on previous research, four main characteristics of the coaches` eye were identified: intuitive, subjective, experience-based and holistic. Results emphasize the underlying mechanisms of the coach`s eye are still unknown and links to theoretical models are missing. In the final section of this paper, we describe a model from decision-making research, the iCodes model (integrated coherence-based decision and search model) by Jekel, Glöckner, and Bröder (2018), and apply it to talent selection scenarios. We believe this model provides a useful starting point for investigating the decision process and the underlying mechanisms of the coach`s eye.
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