# Includes
## What are includes?
Includes are the cornerstone of our API and allow you to enrich and customize your requests. This flexibility is what distinguishes Sportmonks from all competitors. \
\
This manner of flexibility lets you receive the specific data that interests you. Each endpoint comes with a list of includes. For more information, please refer to our [**API reference guide.**](https://football-postman.sportmonks.com/)
You can see includes as something like an add-on to an endpoint. In this tutorial, we will show and explain what includes are and how you can make use of them. Don’t worry, though; using includes is relatively straightforward!
## Creating the request
In this tutorial, our goal is to analyze a match played on the **2nd of August 2020**. We want to know who the teams are and what events (goals, cards, substitutions) happened during the match.\
\
Our starting endpoint will be [**fixture get by date**](https://football-postman.sportmonks.com/#3ea72840-e3b7-48fe-9034-3a2132885ce8):
The date is in YYYY-MM-DD format:
```javascript
https://soccer.sportmonks.com/api/v2.0/fixtures/date/2020-08-02?api_token={API_TOKEN}
```
This request will give you all the fixtures of a specific date. In our case, the 2nd of August 2020, which is what we want.
{% hint style="info" %}
**Note** that you only have access to the[ leagues](https://sportmonks.com/football-api/coverage/) that are available in your plan.
{% endhint %}
## Evaluating the response
All of our endpoints will give you a ‘basic’ response by default. As you can see, we will receive information mostly containing unique ids.
{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Response" %}
```javascript
{
"data": [
{
"id": 16475287,
"league_id": 501,
"season_id": 17141,
"stage_id": 77447501,
"round_id": 194968,
"group_id": null,
"aggregate_id": null,
"venue_id": 8909,
"referee_id": 14859,
"localteam_id": 53,
"visitorteam_id": 338,
"winner_team_id": 53,
"weather_report": {
"code": "clouds",
"type": "few clouds",
"icon": "https://cdn.sportmonks.com/images/weather/02d.png",
"temperature": {
"temp": 59.94,
"unit": "fahrenheit"
},
"temperature_celcius": {
"temp": 15.5,
"unit": "celcius"
},
"clouds": "20%",
"humidity": "67%",
"pressure": 1014,
"wind": {
"speed": "10.29 m/s",
"degree": 300
},
"coordinates": {
"lat": 55.87,
"lon": -4.26
},
"updated_at": "2020-08-02T17:15:04.814798Z"
},
"commentaries": false,
"attendance": null,
"pitch": null,
"details": null,
"neutral_venue": false,
"winning_odds_calculated": true,
"formations": {
"localteam_formation": "4-2-3-1",
"visitorteam_formation": "4-4-2"
},
"scores": {
"localteam_score": 5,
"visitorteam_score": 1,
"localteam_pen_score": null,
"visitorteam_pen_score": null,
"ht_score": "2-1",
"ft_score": "5-1",
"et_score": null,
"ps_score": null
},
"time": {
"status": "FT",
"starting_at": {
"date_time": "2020-08-02 15:30:00",
"date": "2020-08-02",
"time": "15:30:00",
"timestamp": 1596382200,
"timezone": "UTC"
},
"minute": 90,
"second": null,
"added_time": null,
"extra_minute": null,
"injury_time": null
},
"coaches": {
"localteam_coach_id": 1467946,
"visitorteam_coach_id": 30082158
},
"standings": {
"localteam_position": 1,
"visitorteam_position": 12
},
"assistants": {
"first_assistant_id": 12118,
"second_assistant_id": 17249,
"fourth_official_id": 15815
},
"leg": "1/1",
"colors": {
"localteam": {
"color": "#007848",
"kit_colors": "#F0F0F0,#139343,#5B0623,#0A0A0A,#5C8FAE,#FFDF1B,#F0F0F0"
},
"visitorteam": {
"color": "#0046A8",
"kit_colors": "#0046A8,#0046A8,#0046A8,#0046A8,#C40010,#0046A8,#0046A8"
}
},
"deleted": false,
"is_placeholder": false,
}
],
```
{% endtab %}
{% tab title="Field description" %}
| Field | Description |
| ----------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `data` | Opens an array of data you've requested |
| `id` | A unique fixture id |
| `league_id` | The unique id of the league the fixture belongs to |
| `season_id` | The unique id of the season the fixture belongs to |
| `stage_id` | The unique id of the stage the fixture belongs to |
| `round_id` | The unique id of the round the fixture belongs to |
| `group_id` | The unique id of the group the fixture belongs to |
| `aggregate_id` | Indicates if the fixture has an aggregated score |
| `venue_id` | The unique id of the venue the fixture is played at |
| `referee_id` | The unique id of the referee that is in charge of the fixture |
| `localteam_id` | The unique id of the local team |
| `visitorteam_id` | The unique id of the visitor team |
| `winnerteam_id` | Contains the id of the team that won the fixture |
| `weather_report` | Opens an array of weather details. Possible values of the data in this array can be found in our [statuses and definitions](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/api-references/statussus-and-definitions) |
| `commentaries` | Indicates if this fixture has commentaries available |
| `attendance` | Give information about the visitor attendance of the fixture |
| `pitch` | Gives information about the pitch. Possible values can be found in our [statuses and definitions](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/api-references/statussus-and-definitions) |
| `details` | Optional additional information. |
| `neutral_venue` | Indicates if the fixture was played at a neutral fixture. This often happens in cup finals |
| `formations` | Opens an array containing the lineup formations of the teams. Possible values can be found in our [statuses and definitions](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/api-references/statussus-and-definitions) |
| `scores` | Opens an array containing the scores of the fixture |
| `localteam_score` | The number of goals the local team has scored in this fixture |
| `visitorteam_score` | The number of goals the visitor team has scored in this fixture |
| `localteam_pen_score` | The number of penalty goals the local team has scored in this fixture (only available when the fixture goes into penalty shootout) |
| `visitorteam_pen_score` | The number of penalty goals the visitor team has scored in this fixture (only available when the fixture goes into penalty shootout) |
| `ht_score` | The score at halftime |
| `ft_score` | The score at full time (90 minutes) |
| `et_score` | The score in extra time (only available when the fixture goes into extra time) |
| `ps_score` | The score of the penalty shootout (only available when the fixture goes into penalty shootout) |
| `time` | Opens an array containing the time details of the fixture |
| `status` | Indicates in which phase the fixture is in. Possible values can be found in our [statuses and definitions](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/api-references/statussus-and-definitions) |
| `starting_at` | Opens an array containing the time details of the fixture |
| `date_time` | Gives the date and time the fixture starts |
| `date` | Gives the date on which the fixture is played |
| `time` | Gives the starting time of the fixture |
| `timestamp` | The timestamp notation of the match |
| `timezone` | Indicates in which timezone you've requested the data |
| `minute` | Indicates in which minute the fixture is in |
| `second` | Indicates in which second the fixture is in |
| `added_time` | Indicates how much added time is added |
| `extra_minute` | Extra minute is when a fixture goes to extra time. Extra\_minute will count from 0 to 15 and from 15 to 30. |
| `injury_time` | In case of added time, it will end up in injury\_minute |
| `coaches` | Opens an array containing the unique id's of the coaches |
| `localteam_coach_id` | The unique id of the coach from the local team |
| `visitorteam_coach_id` | The unique id of the coach from the visitor team |
| `standings` | Opens an array containing the standings of the local- and visitor team |
| `localteam_position` | Indicates in which positions the local team is before the fixture |
| `visitorteam_position` | Indicates in which positions the visitor team is before the fixture |
| `assistants` | Opens an array containing the unique id's of the assistant referees |
| `first_assistant_id` | The unique id of the first assistant |
| `second_assistant_id` | The unique id of the second assistant |
| `fourth_official_id` | The unique id of the fourth official |
| `leg` | Indicates in how many legs this fixture is played |
| `colors` | Opens an array containing information about the team colors |
| `localteam` | Opens an array containing information about the local team colors |
| `color` | The main color code of the local team |
| `kit_colors` | The kit color codes of the local team |
| `visitorteam` | Opens an array containing information about the visitor team colors |
| `color` | The main color code of the visitor team |
| `kit_colors` | The kit color codes of the local team |
| `deleted` | Indicates if the team was deleted. More information: [Keep in Sync](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/how-to-guides/how-to-keep-your-database-in-sync-deleted-1) |
| `is_placeholder` | This property indicates if the resource is used to display dummy data. The false of this property will always be a `boolean` value. |
| {% endtab %} | |
| {% endtabs %} | |
You can see the fixture id, the local and visitor teams’ id, and the full-time score. However, what if we want to know more about the participating teams, their team names, or what their logos look like?
## Enrich your response with includes!
This is where includes come into play. By merely adding`&include=localTeam,visitorTeam`to the request, we have successfully used includes. This request will show you the extra data about the home and visitor teams because we've ‘included’ information about the local and visitor teams.
```javascript
https://soccer.sportmonks.com/api/v2.0/fixtures/date/2020-08-02?api_token={API_TOKEN}&include=localTeam,visitorTeam
```
As you can see, there is an extra part included in comparison to the basic response:
{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Response" %}
```javascript
"localTeam": {
"data": {
"id": 53,
"legacy_id": 152,
"name": "Celtic",
"short_code": "CEL",
"twitter": null,
"country_id": 1161,
"national_team": false,
"founded": 1888,
"logo_path": "https://cdn.sportmonks.com/images//soccer/teams/21/53.png",
"venue_id": 8909,
"current_season_id": 17141
}
},
"visitorTeam": {
"data": {
"id": 338,
"legacy_id": 693,
"name": "Hamilton Academical",
"short_code": "HMA",
"twitter": null,
"country_id": 1161,
"national_team": false,
"founded": 1874,
"logo_path": "https://cdn.sportmonks.com/images//soccer/teams/18/338.png",
"venue_id": 288196,
"current_season_id": 17141
}
}
}
```
{% endtab %}
{% tab title="Field Description" %}
| Field | Description |
| ------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `localTeam` | Opens an array with information about the local team |
| `id` | The unique id of the local team |
| `legacy_id` | This was for our API version 1.0. It's only of use for old users of our API |
| `name` | The name of the local team |
| `short_code` | The shortcode of the local team |
| `twitter` | The official Twitter page of the local team |
| `country_id` | The unique country id the local team belongs to |
| `national_team` | Indicates if the local team is a national team |
| `founded` | The year when the local team was founded |
| `logo_path` | The logo URL path of the local team logo |
| `venue_id` | The official venue of the local team |
| `current_season_id` | The unique id of the domestic season the local team is active in |
| `visitorTeam` | Opens an array with information about the visitor team |
| `id` | The unique id of the visitor team |
| `legacy_id` | This was for our API version 1.0. It's only of use for old users of our API |
| `name` | The name of the visitor team |
| `short_code` | The shortcode of the visitor team |
| `twitter` | The official Twitter page of the visitor team |
| `country_id` | The unique country id the visitor team belongs to |
| `national_team` | Indicates if the visitor team is a national team |
| `founded` | The year when the visitor team was founded |
| `logo_path` | The logo URL path of the visitor team logo |
| `venue_id` | The official venue of the visitor team |
| `current_season_id` | The unique id of the domestic season the visitor team is active in |
| {% endtab %} | |
| {% endtabs %} | |
The API will give you all the information about the local and visitor teams. You can see the team names, the logos when the team was founded, the venue id, and the id of the current season they’re participating in.
Like shooting fish in a barrel, right?
But we’re not done yet! We still want to know about the **events (goals, cards, and substitutions)** that happened during the match.\
\
Our API has close to no limit on the number of includes per endpoint. This allows you to request all the extra data you want in the same request. So, we can simply add the include `events` to our request:
```javascript
https://soccer.sportmonks.com/api/v2.0/fixtures/date/2020-08-02?api_token={API_TOKEN}&include=localTeam,visitorTeam,events
```
And we'll get all the events per fixture. You can view a snippet of the response below.
{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Response" %}
```javascript
"events": {
"data": [
{
"id": 16475287001,
"team_id": "338",
"type": "yellowcard",
"var_result": null,
"fixture_id": 16475287,
"player_id": 174161,
"player_name": "S. Martin",
"related_player_id": null,
"related_player_name": null,
"minute": 17,
"extra_minute": null,
"reason": null,
"injuried": null,
"result": null
},
{
"id": 16475287002,
"team_id": "53",
"type": "goal",
"var_result": null,
"fixture_id": 16475287,
"player_id": 96792,
"player_name": "O. Édouard",
"related_player_id": 173080,
"related_player_name": "G. Taylor",
"minute": 20,
"extra_minute": null,
"reason": null,
"injuried": null,
"result": "1-0"
},
{
"id": 16475287003,
"team_id": "53",
"type": "goal",
"var_result": null,
"fixture_id": 16475287,
"player_id": 8403182,
"player_name": "J. Frimpong",
"related_player_id": 173080,
"related_player_name": "G. Taylor",
"minute": 31,
"extra_minute": null,
"reason": null,
"injuried": null,
"result": "2-0"
},
{
"id": 16475287004,
"team_id": "338",
"type": "own-goal",
"var_result": null,
"fixture_id": 16475287,
"player_id": 32761,
"player_name": "C. Jullien",
"related_player_id": null,
"related_player_name": null,
"minute": 34,
"extra_minute": null,
"reason": null,
"injuried": null,
"result": "2-1"
},
{
"id": 16475287005,
"team_id": "338",
"type": "yellowcard",
"var_result": null,
"fixture_id": 16475287,
"player_id": 173774,
"player_name": "R. Callachan",
"related_player_id": null,
"related_player_name": null,
"minute": 36,
"extra_minute": null,
"reason": null,
"injuried": null,
"result": null
},
],
}
```
{% endtab %}
{% tab title="Field Description" %}
| Field | Description |
| --------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `id` | The unique id of an event |
| `team_id` | The id of team the event belongs to |
| `type` | The event type. Possible values can be found in our [statuses and definitions](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/api-references/statussus-and-definitions) |
| `var_result` | The outcome of the Video Assistant Referee intervention. Possible values can be found in our [statuses and definitions](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/api-references/statussus-and-definitions) |
| `fixture_id` | The unique id of the fixture |
| `player_id` | The unique id of the main player involved in the event |
| `player_name` | The name of the main player involved in the event |
| `related_player_id` | The unique id of the second player involved in the event (if applicable) |
| `related_player_name` | The name of the second player involved in the event (if applicable) |
| `minute` | The minute of the fixture the event happened in |
| `extra_minute` | The extra minute of the fixture the event happened in (if applicable) |
| `reason` | The reason for the event. Mostly available when the event is a card. (if applicable) |
| `injuried` | Indicates if the event resulted in an injured player |
| `results` | The result of the event. Mostly available when the event is a goal. (if applicable) |
| {% endtab %} | |
| {% endtabs %} | |
Now we have extra information about the participating teams and all the events of a fixture! Just like that, we have achieved our goal. \
\
Includes are basically add-ons that you can use with your request for additional information. The endpoint provides basic data, while the include gives you extra information.
## Conclusion
Not all includes work with every endpoint. So please make sure that you check which includes are available per endpoint in our [**API reference guide**.](https://football-postman.sportmonks.com/)
There are also more advanced, includes called nested includes. These are relationships of relationships. You can already check out our [**nested includes tutorial**](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/tutorials/enriching-your-response/nested-includes) for more information.
{% hint style="info" %}
Not seeing all the data you expected to see? Check out our tutorial about [**pagination**](https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/tutorials/the-basics/pagination).
{% endhint %}
---
# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.
Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:
```
GET https://docs.sportmonks.com/v2/tutorials/enriching-your-response/includes.md?ask=
```
The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.
Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.