Vol.:(0123456789)
Sports Medicine (2023) 53 (Suppl 1):S7–S14 
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01876-3
REVIEW ARTICLE
Carbohydrate Nutrition and Skill Performance in Soccer
Ian Rollo1,2  · Clyde Williams2
Accepted: 8 June 2023 / Published online: 8 July 2023 
© The Author(s) 2023
Abstract
In soccer, players must perform a variety of sport-specific skills usually during or immediately after running, often at sprint 
speed. The quality of the skill performed is likely influenced by the volume of work done in attacking and defending over the 
duration of the match. Even the most highly skilful players succumb to the impact of fatigue both physical and mental, which 
may result in underperforming skills at key moments in a match. Fitness is the platform on which skill is performed during 
team sport. With the onset of fatigue, tired players find it ever more difficult to successfully perform basic skills. Therefore, 
it is not surprising that teams spend a large proportion of their training time on fitness. While acknowledging the central 
role of fitness in team sport, the importance of team tactics, underpinned by spatial awareness, must not be neglected. It is 
well established that a high-carbohydrate diet before a match and, as a supplement during match play, helps delay the onset 
of fatigue. There is some evidence that players ingesting carbohydrate can maintain sport-relevant skills for the duration 
of exercise more successfully compared with when ingesting placebo or water. However, most of the assessments of sport-
specific skills have been performed in a controlled, non-contested environment. Although these methods may be judged 
as not ecologically valid, they do rule out the confounding influences of competition on skill performance. The aim of this 
brief review is to explore whether carbohydrate ingestion, while delaying fatigue during match play, may also help retain 
sport soccer-specific skill performance.
Key Points 
The successful execution of repeated skilled actions is a 
fundamental requirement for soccer performance.
Soccer players experience, to different degrees, physical 
and mental fatigue that have a negative impact on the 
performance of specific skills.
Increasing muscle and liver glycogen stores before and 
ingesting carbohydrate during competition delays the 
onset of fatigue and is conducive to maintaining the 
execution of soccer-specific skills.
Ingesting carbohydrate, at key times during competition, 
could counter negative feelings and improve concentra-
tion, helping players maintain skill execution over the 
duration of exercise.
1 Introduction
In soccer, players must perform a variety of sport-specific 
skills usually during or immediately after running at vari-
ous speeds. There is an obvious link between sport-spe-
cific fitness and the players’ ability to execute the relevant 
skill as and when it is appropriate, when defending and 
attacking. In all sport, skill is used as an umbrella term 
that includes not only physical performance of a particu-
lar skill but also the complex interaction of cognitive and 
technical abilities to respond to the multitude of scenarios 
that occur in every match. While technical skills can be 
taught to the point of being instinctive, the cognitive skill 
of being able to ‘read the game’ is one that is developed 
over the sporting lifespan of successful players.
Both the skill proficiency of the player and the number 
of specific technical actions reduce as a match progresses 
[1, 2]. In addition, the higher the tempo of a match, the 
sooner players begin to experience both physical (run, 
sprint, jump) and mental (concentration, decision-making) 
 * Ian Rollo 
 
ian.rollo@pepsico.com
1 
Gatorade Sports Science Institute, PepsiCo Life Sciences, 
Global R&D, Leicestershire, UK
2 
School of Sports Exercise and Health Sciences, 
Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK
S8
 
I. Rollo, C. Williams 
effects of fatigue, which often results in a decrease in 
skill performance [3, 4]. This is often to the frustration of 
coaches as well as spectators, who, for example, observe 
a misplaced shot, an ill-timed pass or a poor decision just 
when the team need it least. Therefore, teams dedicate 
a large proportion of their training time to fitness [5, 6].
Fatigue during prolonged exercise is closely associated 
with the depletion of the carbohydrate store (glycogen) in 
skeletal muscles (for full review see Ref. [7]). In a recent 
study of fatigue in a football match, Mohr et al. reported 
critically low glycogen levels in the skeletal muscles 
after 90 min of play and a further significant reduction 
following 30 min of extra time. Players ran less and per-
formed standard skills with less accuracy than earlier in 
the game [8]. An early reduction in muscle and liver gly-
cogen stores, during prolonged exercise, can be prevented 
by carbohydrate ingestion before and during exercise. 
Using this nutritional strategy, fatigue is delayed and per-
formance sustained for longer than in the absence of this 
intervention [9]. In addition, several previous reviews have 
concluded carbohydrate ingestion also facilitates the pres-
ervation of skill performance when players are fatigued 
[10–12].
The aim of this paper is to discuss the most recent 
studies investigating the effects of carbohydrate inges-
tion on soccer-specific skills, and the possible role that 
carbohydrate ingestion plays in negating the impact that 
more recently reported mental fatigue has on skill perfor-
mance. To inform this review article an electronic litera-
ture search was undertaken using three online databases 
(PubMed, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus). Searches were 
performed using keywords from existing relevant papers. 
Search terms were ‘Soccer’, ‘Football’, ‘Carbohydrate’, 
‘Skill’ and ‘Performance’ phrased as appropriate. Refer-
ence lists of all studies and relevant systematic reviews 
were examined manually to identify relevant studies for 
this review.
2  Skill Assessment
Skilled movements are physically complex but even more so 
when performed during match play because they involve an 
interaction between the physical and cognitive qualities nec-
essary to achieve successful outcomes [13]. The acquisition 
of skills and their retention is a process that begins early in 
the career of soccer players. By the time they become pro-
fessional players they will have achieved superior levels of 
soccer-specific skills, both technical and cognitive. Further-
more, hours of team training and competitions help players 
consolidate and extend the tactical execution of their skills. 
Therefore, it is not surprising that the defining characteristics 
of professional players are their levels of sport-specific skills 
in addition to their superior physical attributes [14–16].
Traditionally, a team’s and players’ level of soccer-spe-
cific skills have been assessed by the ‘experienced eye’ of 
coaches who know what is expected of professional soccer 
players. The technical components of skill fall into two large 
categories: closed (free kick, corners, penalties, throw-in) 
and open (passing, tackling, heading, goal shooting) skills 
[17].
In the modern game, skill performance is typically cap-
tured via team metrics from competitive matches, for exam-
ple, pass completion, interceptions, shots on target, chal-
lenges won and number of interceptions [18]. An important 
metric is ball possession during match play. Individual play-
ers must work cohesively to create space, pass and control 
the ball repeatedly whilst being challenged by the opposi-
tion. Although percentage ball possession does not guaran-
tee success, those teams with greater percentage ball pos-
session perform more passes, touches per possession, shots, 
dribbles and final-third entries in comparison with teams 
with low percentage ball possession [19]. On-field analyses 
allow comparisons of how the speed and skill of the game 
changes, from match to match and beyond. For example, an 
analysis of the Men’s World Cup finals between 1966 and 
2010 reported a 35% increase in the number of passes per 
minute of play, which was accompanied by a 15% increase 
in the speed of the match [20]. Nonetheless, while the team 
metrics obtained by ever more sophisticated match analysis 
technology are hugely informative, the impact of training, 
rehabilitation and nutritional intervention on individual 
players may be better understood by assessing their skills 
by objective assessments. Desirable as this is, it is difficult 
to design objective skill tests that reproduce all that goes 
into the successful execution of skills in competition. As a 
result, some studies have used isolated tests of soccer skill, 
for example, ball juggling [21], wall volley [22], heading 
[23], shooting [13, 24], passing [24–27] and dribbling [28].
Some laboratory-based studies provide controlled envi-
ronments to investigate isolated skills and also attempt to 
simulate the physical demands of the sport. For example, the 
Soccer Match Simulation (SMS) protocol embeds soccer-
specific skills to enhance the ecological validity of a previ-
ously validated simulated assessment of the energy demands 
of a soccer match [29, 30]. However, while objective tests 
of skill have many advantages, they are not without several 
limitations. Rodriguez et al. discuss the importance of play-
ing surface on the ecological validity of soccer skills tests 
[27, 28]. For example, dribbling a ball at speed on a smooth 
floor is likely a greater challenge than executing this skill 
on grass. Correspondingly, the footwear worn for differ-
ent surfaces may not be optimal for the skill under assess-
ment, such as boots versus trainers when testing shooting 
skill. Furthermore, the use of sport-specific materials that 
S9
Carbohydrate Nutrition and Skill Performance in Soccer
are familiar to players, such as soccer mannequins instead 
of target boxes, should also be utilised [31]. Ali [17] has 
described the strengths and limitations of tests of soccer 
skill performance.
3  Carbohydrate Ingestion and Skill
Fitness and skill go ‘hand-in-glove’; as players tire, they are 
less able to perform the relevant skills when needed [1, 2]. 
As mentioned earlier, there is a close association between 
the development of fatigue during a match and the depletion 
of players’ muscle glycogen stores, which becomes criti-
cal should the match go into extra time, extending play to 
120 min [8]. Nutritional strategies to increase the body’s 
glycogen stores by providing carbohydrate before and during 
exercise improves endurance by delaying the depletion of 
this essential fuel. The effectiveness of carbohydrate inges-
tion applies not only to constant pace running and cycling 
but also to intermittent high-speed running [9], which is the 
common activity pattern in team sport, especially in soccer. 
How much carbohydrate should be consumed, and when, are 
questions that have led to tried and tested recommendations 
[5, 28, 32–37] (Table 1).
While adopting nutritional strategies to delay a rapid loss 
of the body’s glycogen stores helps players maintain their 
work rate during matches, the question is whether it also 
helps prevent a loss of skill? A simple answer would be 
that if players tire less readily, after implementing a carbo-
hydrate feeding strategy, then they would be better able to 
execute the necessary skills in match play. Unfortunately, 
there are too few studies to provide a definitive answer to 
this question. However, one study reported that when male 
professional soccer players ingested either a 7% carbo-
hydrate–electrolyte or placebo beverage before (5 ml per 
kilogram body mass) and every 15 min (2 ml per kilogram 
body mass) during a 90 min on-field soccer match and then 
completed the assessment of four skills, dribbling speed, 
coordination, precision and power, there was a significantly 
improved retention of dribbling speed and precision follow-
ing carbohydrate ingestion [38].
In an innovative study on the impact of carbohydrate 
ingestion on skill, tests were undertaken on players’ domi-
nant and non-dominant limbs. Using a soccer-specific pro-
tocol, higher passing scores were achieved by both dominant 
and non-dominant feet following the ingestion of carbohy-
drate (30 g, before and at half time, compared with placebo 
whilst drinking water ad libitum) [27]. This effect was evi-
dent from 60 min onwards. Importantly, improved perfor-
mance was attained without loss of passing speed, which 
was better maintained in the non-dominant foot with carbo-
hydrate ingestion. This observation is of interest because it is 
consistent with other studies in sports such as tennis, where 
Table 1  Carbohydrate intake recommendations for team sport
Team sport exercise scenario Objectives
Desired adaptation/outcome
Suggested daily 
carbohydrate inges-
tion range
Considerations
In-season training
(1 game per week)
To delay physical and mental fatigue
To maintain physical qualities (and improve 
where possible/appropriate)
To keep players injury and illness free
To maintain aerobic and anaerobic fitness
To at least maintain strength, power, speed
To maintain lean body mass
To support physical and technical perfor-
mance
4–8 g/kg body mass Range accommodates variations in loads 
across the micro-cycle (e.g. low load days 
and match day − 1 carbohydrate loading 
protocols) as well as individual training 
goals (e.g. manipulation of body composi-
tion to accommodate weight loss and fat loss 
or weight gain and lean mass gain).
Practice competition carbohydrate ingestion 
regime
Match day − 1, match day 
and match day + 1
6–8 g/kg body mass 
to elevate muscle 
glycogen stores
Ingest 1–3 g of carbohydrate per kilogram 
body mass 3–4 h before a match to replenish 
liver glycogen stores
Ingest 30 g of carbohydrate following the 
warm-up and during the half-time interval
Ingest 1 g carbohydrate per kilogram body 
mass per hour with fluids after a match to 
start restoration of glycogen and rehydration
S10
 
I. Rollo, C. Williams 
non-dominant or weaker side (backhand) shots respond posi-
tively to carbohydrate ingestion, especially when fatigued 
[39]. The assessment of complex skilled actions on the non-
dominant side may require greater activation of the central 
nervous system (CNS) and therefore be more susceptible to 
fatigue [27]. Furthermore non-dominant skilled actions may 
be more likely influenced by the arousal level of the player 
[40]. Thus, the performance of players’ non-dominant sides 
appears to have a greater sensitivity to carbohydrate inges-
tion [27], even though the ‘non-dominant’ side is likely to 
be inferior in performing skills.
4  Carbohydrate Ingestion and Mental 
Fatigue
The physiology of fatigue has been extensively studied [41]. 
A recent model of motor or cognitive task induced fatigue 
proposes that no single factor is responsible for declines in 
skill performance. Instead, fatigue is considered a psycho-
physiological condition. Motor fatigue and perceived fatigue 
are interdependent but hinge on various determinants and 
depend on modulating factors such as age, sex and specific 
skill characteristics [42]. Mental fatigue is defined as a psy-
chobiological state that arises during prolonged demanding 
cognitive activity and results in an acute feeling of tired-
ness and/or a decreased cognitive ability as well as mood 
changes [43, 44]. Mental fatigue can reduce physical capac-
ity, assessed through reduced time to exhaustion and ele-
vated rating of perceived exertion (RPE) [45], and has been 
shown to fluctuate throughout a competitive season [46]. 
To highlight this point, mental fatigue has been found, in 
one review, to have a negative influence on 37% of soccer-
specific skills (n = 92) [43].
Mental fatigue has been recognised as a key considera-
tion in team sport, due to the associated negative impact 
on physical, technical, decision-making and tactical perfor-
mance [47]. Contributing factors to mental fatigue in team 
sport environments include but are not limited to prolonged 
cognitive demands, team meetings, travel and the inability 
to ‘switch off’ [48, 49].
Of note is the approach taken in laboratory studies which 
use the repeated execution of inherent sport-specific skills 
to induce mental fatigue [50]. Thus, tracking skill execution 
may also be important because it might reflect the presence 
of both mental and physical fatigue. Correspondingly, moni-
toring mental fatigue has been recommended in team sport 
to provide an overall picture of how players are coping with 
the demands of training and competition [51]. Therefore, 
strategies are used to help avoid mental fatigue, for example, 
displacement activities, such as changes in training routines, 
environment and, of course, adequate rest and recovery. 
Increasing dietary carbohydrate while improving exercise 
capacity both in training and in competition may also be a 
mood-changing countermeasure to mental fatigue [52, 53]. 
If players are feeling good rather than bad (pleasure–dis-
pleasure) and energized (i.e. in an activated state) before 
and during matches, then it is more likely that they will per-
form better [40, 54]. For example, Backhouse et al. have 
shown that the ingestion of carbohydrate elevated perceived 
activation during the final 30 min of 120-min of intermit-
tent running exercise [55] and also attenuated the decline in 
pleasure–displeasure during a 120-min bout of cycling [56]. 
Administering both a Feeling Scale (FS) and an RPE scale 
allows a measure of not only ‘what’ (RPE) but also ‘how’ 
(FS) a person feels [57] but is rarely administered during 
skill intervention studies or applied settings.
A recent review identified mouth rinsing and expectorat-
ing a carbohydrate beverage as a potential acute counter-
measure to mental fatigue [58]. The recognition of carbo-
hydrate in the mouth, when administered immediately after 
a mentally fatiguing task, was linked to increased excitabil-
ity of corticomotor pathways [59, 60]. Furthermore, there 
appears to be a direct link between improvements in task-
specific activity and activation within the primary senso-
rimotor cortex in response to oral carbohydrate signalling 
[61]. These results contribute to a possible explanation for 
improved high-intensity intermittent running performance 
in response to mouth rinsing with a 10% carbohydrate bev-
erage [62, 63]. Although not all studies report this effect 
[64], central activation mediated by the ingestion of carbo-
hydrate may contribute to the better retention of sprint and 
technical performance observed early in exercise or in the 
absence of hypoglycaemia [27, 28, 65]. While mouth rins-
ing with a carbohydrate beverage has been shown to benefit 
complex whole-body skilled actions in fencers, compared 
with taste-matched placebos [66], the impact on soccer skill 
performance is yet to be investigated. Furthermore, it is also 
important to note that mouth rinsing with non-sweet car-
bohydrate activates the reward centres of the brain and so 
may contribute to the ‘feel good’ sensation that may counter 
mental fatigue [67]. Nevertheless, these findings should be 
considered as an additional benefit to carbohydrate inges-
tion, during or after exercise, when substrate delivery and 
replenishment of glycogen stores are the respective priorities 
[68–70].
These responses to carbohydrate ingestion may not be sur-
prising bearing in mind that glucose is the main fuel for the 
brain and CNS [71]. For optimum functioning of the brain 
and CNS, glucose homeostasis must be maintained even dur-
ing a wide range of conditions. Should blood glucose fall to 
hypoglycaemic levels, then the neural drive to skeletal mus-
cles will be compromised; however, it is restored following 
the ingestion of carbohydrate [72]. During exercise, the rate 
of glucose release from the liver into the blood increases to 
match the glucose uptake by contracting muscle [73]. In most 
S11
Carbohydrate Nutrition and Skill Performance in Soccer
team sport, blood glucose concentrations are well maintained 
over the duration of competition (80–90 min) and extra time 
(120 min in soccer) in well-fed individuals [74]. Nevertheless, 
carbohydrate ingestion at the onset of exercise is an effec-
tive strategy not only to top up muscle glycogen stores but 
also because it temporarily inhibits hepatic glucose release 
in a dose-dependent manner, and so conserves liver glycogen 
stores [75, 76]. Carbohydrate ingestion, as a means of pre-
serving the finite store of liver glycogen, will maintain blood 
glucose concentrations and performance late in exercise. This 
strategy is particularly beneficial when matches extend to 
extra time [8, 77]. Of interest is the observation that elevated 
blood glucose concentrations are associated with improved 
skill performance in comparison with euglycaemia [27, 28, 
65, 78]. An immediate explanation for this observation is not 
apparent other than that glucose is a fuel for the brain [79, 80]. 
However, the brain is sensitive to changes in blood glucose, 
and the rate of change may act to monitor the availability of 
whole-body carbohydrate stores.
5  Conclusion
Participants in team sport experience, to different degrees, 
physical and mental fatigue that have a negative impact on 
the performance of sport-specific skills. The complex series 
of events between brain and skeletal muscle that interact to 
minimise the impact of physical and mental fatigue on the 
performance of skills during competition, following carbo-
hydrate feeding, is summarised in Fig. 1. Nutritional strate-
gies that increase muscle and liver glycogen stores prior to 
competition and provide carbohydrate during competition 
maintain work rate by delaying the onset of fatigue. This 
effect of carbohydrate ingestion is, in itself, conducive to 
maintaining the execution of sport-specific skill. Further-
more, ingesting carbohydrate, at key times during competi-
tion, could counter negative feelings and improve concentra-
tion, thereby helping players maintain skill execution over 
the duration of exercise.
Acknowledgements This supplement is supported by the Gatorade 
Sports Science Institute (GSSI). The supplement was guest edited 
by Lawrence L. Spriet, who convened a virtual meeting of the GSSI 
Expert Panel in October 2022 and received honoraria from the GSSI, a 
division of PepsiCo, Inc., for his participation in the meeting. Dr Spriet 
received no honoraria for guest editing this supplement. Dr Spriet 
Fig. 1  Translating thoughts into skilled actions. The electro-chemical 
chain of events between the brain and skeletal muscles, and how car-
bohydrate ingestion may impact skill performance. BM body mass, 
SR sarcoplasmic reticulum, Ca2+ calcium, Na+/K+ sodium–potassium 
pump, ATP adenosine triphosphate. ‘+’ = positive influence upon, 
‘−’ = negative influence upon. Mood, motivation, RPE [52, 55, 58], 
facilitation of corticomotor outputs [60, 61], blood glucose availabil-
ity, hepatic glycogen preservation [75, 76, 81, 82], muscle innerva-
tion: SR calcium handling [83], ATP generation [83–85] 
S12
 
I. Rollo, C. Williams 
suggested peer reviewers for each paper, which were sent to the Sports 
Medicine Editor-in-Chief for approval, prior to any reviewers being 
approached. Dr Spriet provided comments on each paper and made an 
editorial decision based on comments from the peer reviewers and the 
Editor-in-Chief. Where decisions were uncertain, Dr Spriet consulted 
with the Editor-in-Chief. The views expressed in this manuscript are 
those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy 
of PepsiCo, Inc. The authors would like to acknowledge and thank all 
previous and existing colleagues and collaborators.
Declarations 
Funding This article is based on a presentation by Ian Rollo to the 
GSSI Expert Panel in October 2022. No honorarium for participation 
in or preparation of the article for that meeting was provided by the 
GSSI. No other sources of funding were utilized by the authors in the 
preparation of the article for this supplement.
Conflict of interest Ian Rollo is an employee of the Gatorade Sports 
Science Institute. However, the views expressed in this manuscript 
are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or 
policy of PepsiCo, Inc. Clyde Williams declares no conflicts of inter-
est relevant to the content of this review. While this author previously 
presented to the GSSI Expert Panel in 2015, and funding for participa-
tion in that meeting together with an honorarium were provided by the 
GSSI, the honorarium was donated to charity.
Author contributions IR conceived the idea for this review. IR and CW 
conducted the literature search and selected the articles for inclusion in 
the review. IR and CW co-wrote the first draft and revised the original 
manuscript. Both authors read and approved the final version.
Open Access  This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attri-
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need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a 
copy of this licence, visit http:// creat iveco mmons. org/ licen ses/ by/4. 0/.
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Carbohydrate Nutrition and Skill Performance in Soccer.
Rollo, Ian,Williams, Clyde