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Sports Med 1997;31:45-47 45
BrJ
Energy and macronutrient intakes ofprofessional
football (soccer) players Br J Sports Med: first published as 10.1136/bjsm.31.1.45 on 1 March 1997. Downloaded from
RJMaughan
Abstract sional soccer players at two Scottish Premier
Objective-To examine the dietary habits League clubs during a typical week oftraining
ofprofessional soccer players at two Scot- and competition.
tish Premier League clubs during the
competitive season. intake of Methods
Methods-A study ofthe dietarywith two Subjects who volunteered to participate in this
51 professional soccer players study were the playing staff of two successful
different clubs was carried out by the Scottish Premier League teams. All players at
seven day weighed intake method. of the both clubs took part, and all measurements
Results-Physical characteristics with were made at a time when players were in full
two groups of players were similar, training. Players prevented by injury or illness
only small differences in age and body from training or competing at the time of the
mass but no difference in height and body study, as well as those who had returned to
fat. Mean (SD) daily energy intake for match fitness within the previous week were
club A was 11.0 (2.6) MJ, and for club B excluded from the analysis, giving a total of26
12.8 (2.2) MJ. The higher energy intake at subjects at club A and 25 subjects at club B. As
club B was largely accounted for by a well as recording food and drink intake, players
higher (P < 0.005) fat intake (118 v 93 g kept a record oftraining undertaken and games
d-l): there was no difference inthe absolute played during the study week. All measure-
amounts of protein, carbohydrate, or ments were made at a time when players had
alcohol consumed. When expressed as a one competitive game in the study week, and
fraction oftotal energy intake, mean pro- all data were collected within a four week
tein intake was higher (P < 0.05) and fat period. The players included nine current and
intake lower (P < 0.01) at club A. four former full international players, as well as
Conclusions-The mean energy intake of reserve team players, giving a wide spread of
these players was not high compared with age, playing experience, and ability.
athletes in endurance sports. Fractional All players weighed and recorded all food
contribution of the macronutrients to and drink consumed for a period ofseven con- http://bjsm.bmj.com/
total energy intake was broadly similar to secutive days. Players were issued with food
that ofthe general population. diaries and digital scales readable to 2 g and
(BrJ'Sports Med 1997;31:45-47) with a comprehensive set ofinstructions on the
Keywords: soccer; football; nutrition; diet. procedures to be followed. Diaries were
inspected after two days to ensure proper
record keeping and to resolve any difficulties.
The completed dietary records were analysed
Regular training imposes extra nutritional using a computerised version ofthe food com- on January 6, 2023 by guest. Protected by copyright.
demands on all sports participants, and the position tables ofPaul and Southgate.'
requirements of competition place an addi- Height, body mass, and skinfold thickness
tional load on the individual. Total energy values were measured on all players in the
expenditure is increased in proportion to the morning before training. Percent body fat was
amount of exercise performed, and the addi- estimated from skinfold thickness measured at
tional requirements for individual nutrients four sites using the equation of Durnin and
will also be increased by varying amounts. In Rahaman.'
locomotor sports where the energy demand is Data in the text and tables are expressed as
relatively easy to quantify, there have been sev- mean (SD) throughout. Comparisons between
eral studies of the energy expenditure and the two groups of players were made by an
nutrient intake of elite competitors: these unpaired t test. Where the relation between
sports include cycling, running, and swim- variables within the players at a single club was
Environmental and ming. The dietary habits of games players examined, a least squares linear regression
Occupational have, however, been less comprehensively model was used.
Medicine, University investigated, and in spite ofthe universal popu-
Medical School, larity ofsoccer as a game, little information has
Foresterhill, Aberdeen been published on the dietary habits of soccer Results
AB25 2ZD, United players. One estimate has suggested that there Physical characteristics of the players are
Kingdom may be as many as 120 million players shown in table 1. The variation in playing
RJMaughan worldwide,' and yet we know almostnothing of experience of these players is reflected in the
Correspondence to Professor the dietary habits or nutritional status of elite age range of 18-36 years. Players from club A
RJMaughan. performers in this sport. were older (P < 0.02) and heavier (P < 0.01)
Accepted for publication The purpose of this study was to assess the but not taller than those at club B. There was
29 April 1996 energy and macronutrient intake of profes- no statistically significant difference in the esti-
46
Maughan
Table 1 Physical characteristics ofplayersfrom the two players to be approximately 6.1 MJ (1500
clubs kcal). The only technique that might be
Team A Team B expected to give a reliable estimate of energy Br J Sports Med: first published as 10.1136/bjsm.31.1.45 on 1 March 1997. Downloaded from
Mean SD Mean SD expenditure in a situation such as this is the
doubly labelled water method, but this has not
Age (years) 26 4 23 4 yet been applied to soccer players.
Height (cm) 178 7 178 5 Energy intake is comparatively simple to meas-
Body mass (kg) 80.1 7.8 74.6 6.5 ure, but only a limited number of studies on the
Body fat (%) 12.2 2.4 13.0 2.5 energy intakes of players has been attempted.
mated percent body fat content of players at Comparisons between studies carried out in
the two clubs. different countries must be made with some cau-
Results for dietary energy and macronutri- tion because of the differences in dietary habit
ent intake are shown in table 2. Table 3 shows among the normal population: dietary habits are
the contribution of the macronutrients to also changing with time and this is especially true
energy intake expressed as a percentage oftotal in sport, where an intensive education programme
energy intake. The results reveal an energy is encouraging athletes to adopt specific nutri-
intake somewhat higher than the average for tional strategies. Where analysis ofdietary records
the United Kingdom population, but the aver- of soccer players has been undertaken, data for
age composition of the diet is not different elite Danish players show a mean energy intake of
from the national average. In spite ofthe higher 15.7 MJ d- (3738 kcal d&).5 Data reported for
body mass of players in team A, there was a club players in Sweden give a daily energy intake
lower total energy intake in these players (P < of 20.7 MJ (4930 kcal), but these measurements
0.01). Dietary intakes ofprotein, carbohydrate, were made over only four days: these intakes were
and alcohol were not different between the two considered to be much less than the energy
clubs, but there was a lower (P < 0.005) fat requirement of the players, based on body mass
intake in the diets ofplayers at club A. and activity profiles.5 Caldarone et at also
When the dietary intake of the macronutri- reported a rather low mean value of 12.9 MJ
ents is expressed as a percentage oftotal energy (3066 kcal) for energy intake in 33 players
intake, protein accounted for a significantly competing in the top Italian division. In one indi-
greater (P < 0.05) percentage of total energy vidual English international player, Reilly7 recently
for players at club A [15.9(2.6)%] than those reported a daily intake of 13.1 MJ (3127 kcal).
at club B [14.3(2.0)%]. Fat accounted for a Dutch players competing at elite level were
smaller (P < 0.01) fraction of energy intake at reported to have a mean energy intake of 14.3 MJ
club A [31.5(5.2)%] than at club B d' (3406 kcal d').8 InAmerican collegeplayers, an
[35.0(4. 1)%]. There were no significant differ- energyintake ofabout 11 MJ d' was reported, but
ences in the fractions of total energy intake the standard of play of these individuals would
accounted for by carbohydrate or by alcohol at have been considerably lower than those in the
the two clubs. present study or in the other investigations http://bjsm.bmj.com/
referred to above.9
The mean values for energy intake in these
Discussion Scottish players are generally lower than those
The training and competition programmes of in other published reports. This may be the
the two clubs were similar and differences in result ofdeliberate or inadvertent underreport-
training load seem unable to account for the ing ofintake. One part ofthis may be the result
observed difference in energy intake between of the emphasis on fitness for match play, and
the two sets of players. Because of the body mass and body composition undoubtedly on January 6, 2023 by guest. Protected by copyright.
variations in the exercise intensity across the have a bearing on this. In sports where a low
duration of training, no estimates of energy body mass is crucial to performance, it is com-
expenditure are available for these players. monto see underreporting ofdietary intakes,'"
Reilly4 estimated the daily energy expenditure although this seems to be much more common
during typical training of English professional in female athletes than in males. Among the
players in this study, there was a significant,
Table 2 Daily energy and macronutrient intake ofplayersfrom the two clubs albeit weak, negative relation between energy
TeamA Team B intake and estimated per cent body fat content
among the players at club A (r = -0.489,
Mean SD Range Mean SD Range P<0.05), even though there was no relation
Energy (MJ) 11.0 2.6 5.2-16.5 12.8 2.2 8.5-16.2 between energy intake and body mass. In a
Protein (g) 103 26 59-154 108 20 77-144 previous study of female distance runners, a
Fat (g) 93 33 41-195 118 24 74-179 negative relation has been reported between
Carbohydrate (g) 354 95 167-538 397 94 243-599 energy expenditure (measured by doubly
Alcohol (g) 9 10 0-38 13 9 0-28 labelled water) and reported energy intake,
Table 3 Percent contribution ofmacronutrients to energy intake suggesting that underreporting of energy in-
take occurs to a greater extent in the subjects
Team A Team B training hardest: these were also the individuals
Mean SD most concerned with body image."1 The same
Mean SD Range Range may apply to some degree among elite
Protein 15.9 2.6 11.9-23.8 14.3 2.0 10.8-18.5 performers in sport, even though none of the
Fat 31.5 5.2 19.2-41.2 35.0 4.1 23.8-42.9 players in this study would be considered over-
Carbohydrate 51.4 7.8 34.6-64.8 48.4 4.4 38.3-58.4 weight. It seems likely that any underreporting
Alcohol 2.3 2.7 0-10.5 3.2 2.2 0-7.2 of intake among these players was inadvertent
Diet of UKprofessional soccerplayers 47
rather than deliberate. An attempt was made to to be underreported, and in some cases the
minimise this effect by interviewing players intake may have been substantially higher than
and inspecting their diaries after the first two the reported intake. Ten of the 25 players at Br J Sports Med: first published as 10.1136/bjsm.31.1.45 on 1 March 1997. Downloaded from
days of record keeping, but the possibility of club A and four of the 25 players at club B
missing items cannot be excluded. There was reported zero alcohol intake during the week
no relation between estimated percent body fat that diet was monitored.
content and energy intake at club B. Protein intake was highly variable between
The absolute amount ofcarbohydrate in the individual players, with a range from 59-154 g
diet may be an important factor for the recov- d-' (12-24% of total energy) at club A and
ery ofthe muscle and liver glycogen stores after 77-144 g d-' (11-19%) at club B. Protein intake
training and competition.12 In a recent review is often expressed relative to body mass, and
of some of the nutritional demands of soccer, the intake at club A was 1.3 (0.4) g kg-' d-l, with
the authors stressed the need for a high carbo- a range ofvalues from 0.8-2.1 g kg-' d-l: at club
hydrate intake, especially in the two to three B, the mean daily protein intake was 1.5 (0.2)
days before competition: a carbohydrate intake g kg-' d-' with a range ofvalues from 1.1-1.8 g
of 10 g kg-' body mass d-' was recommended at kg-' d-'. Lemon'7 has recommended a daily
this time." It is more usual, however, to focus protein intake of 1.4-1.7 g kg-' as being
on the carbohydrate content ofthe diet relative adequate for soccer players, and although some
to total food intake. Although a diet in which players fell below this recommended intake, all
about 50% of the energy is accounted for by were at or above the recommended intake for
carbohydrate may be considered satisfactory the general United Kingdom population of0.8
for the general population, this is somewhat g kg` d-'.
less than the recommendations that are gener- In summary, these results show a pattern of
ally made for sportsmen and women, where a dietary intake in elite professional soccer play-
carbohydrate intake equivalent to 60-70% of ers that is not very different from that of the
total energy intake is considered appropriate.'2 general population in the United Kingdom.
Recommendations for soccer players stress Therewere some small differences between the
that a high carbohydrate diet is essential in two clubs studied, but in general the pattern of
training and in preparation for competition."4 energy and macronutrient intake was the same
The mean values for diet composition in these in both clubs. It seems clear that some players
players suggest a diet that is not different from consume a diet that supplies less carbohydrate
that ofthe general population, and this finding than is normally recommended to sustain per-
is in accord with other reports for soccer play- formance in training and competition. The diet
ers.59 In elite Dutch players, carbohydrate of other players, however, seems entirely
accounted for about 47% of total energy adequate to meet their needs, and any
intake.8 recommendations for dietary modification
The use of mean values in these reports should be targeted at individual players only
does, however, obscure the extremely large after an assessment of current intake has been http://bjsm.bmj.com/
interindividual variability that is often ob- made.
served. Some players in the present investiga- I gratefully acknowledges the assistance ofthe management and
tion reported a carbohydrate intake ofless than playing staff ofthe two clubs where this work was carried out.
40% of total energy intake, with the lowest 1 Ekblom B. Applied physiology of soccer. Sports Med
individual value being 35%. Even if the total 1986;3:50-60.
intake is subject to errors resulting from 2 Paul AA, Southgate DAT. The composition offoods. London:
underreporting, this should not significantly HMSO, 1988.
3 Durnin JVGA, Rahaman MM. The assessment of the
affect the composition of the diets. There amount offat in the human body from measurements of on January 6, 2023 by guest. Protected by copyright.
seems little doubt that some of these players skinfold thickness. BrJ Nutr 1967;21:681-9.
that did not 4 Reilly T. What research tells the coach about soccer. Washington
were consuming a diet provide 5 DC: AAHPERD, 1979.
sufficient carbohydrate to maintain a high level Bangsbo J. Fitness training in football. Bagsvaerd:
in and Several 6 HO+Storm, 1994.
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published reports suggest that many players the nutritional state oftop level football players. In: Santilli
a with muscle levels that G, ed. Sports medicine applied to football. Rome: CONI,
begin game glycogen 7 1990:133-41.
are less than optimal," and it seems clear that Reilly T. Physiological aspects ofsoccer. Biol Sport 1994;11:
have 3-20
many players an inappropriately low 8 van Erp-Baart AMJ, Saris WHM, Binkhorst RA, Vos JA,
dietary carbohydrate intake. No attempt was Elvers JWH. Nationwide survey on nutritional habits in
elite athletes. Part 1. Energy, carbohydrate, protein and fat
made in this study to analyse diet in relation to intake. IntJ Sports Med 1989; 10; S3-S10
competition to investigate possible changes in 9 Short SH, Short WR. Four-year study ofuniversity athletes'
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eating preparation Burke L, Deakin VA. Clinical sports nutrition. Sydney:
some of the players were involved in midweek 11 McGrawHill, 1994.
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The average alcohol intake ofthese players is 13 ery. J Sports Sci 1991;9(special issue):29-52.
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