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Completed

NCT Number: NCT07604519

Multi-Ingredient Supplementation in Professional Football Players

This randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial will investigate the effects of multi-ingredient supplementation containing taurine, caffeine, and phosphatidylserine on physical performance, cognitive function, cognitive fatigue responses, recovery, sleep quality, and autonomic nervous system activity in elite male soccer players. Participants will complete a 14-day supplementation protocol and undergo football-specific performance, reaction-time, cognitive-fatigue, recovery, and sleep-related assessments before and after the intervention. The study aims to determine whether phosphatidylserine dose influences physical, cognitive, fatigue-related, and recovery-related outcomes when combined with taurine and caffeine.

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Key information

Conditions

Sports Performance Cognitive Performance During Physical Activity Fatigue Football Players Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Recovery Signs and Symptoms

Age range

18 year–35 year

Sex eligibility

Male

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Professional Football Training Center, Budapest, Hungary

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About this study

The planned study will be a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial designed as a continuation and extension of previous research on multi-ingredient supplementation in professional football players. The primary aim will be to investigate the dose-dependent effects of phosphatidylserine combined with taurine and caffeine under standardized football-specific training conditions and acute cognitive-fatigue conditions.

Approximately 80 professional male football players competing at national level will be randomly assigned to four groups: placebo, taurine + caffeine, taurine + caffeine + phosphatidylserine 300 mg, and taurine + caffeine + phosphatidylserine 600 mg. Importantly, caffeine and taurine doses will remain identical across all active supplementation groups in order to enable a more precise evaluation of the independent effects of phosphatidylserine.

Participants will complete a 14-day supplementation protocol and undergo baseline and post-intervention assessments including 30 m sprint performance, reaction time, cognitive-fatigue responses, football-specific GPS monitoring, fatigue-related performance decline, recovery-related variables, sleep monitoring, and autonomic nervous system activity assessment.

The study is expected to provide novel insights into the role of phosphatidylserine in football-specific performance, cognitive fatigue resistance, recovery, and neurophysiological responses in elite football players.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

-

Inclusion criteria

  • Professional male football players aged 18-35 years
  • Regular participation in team training and competitive matches
  • Clinically healthy status confirmed prior to participation
  • Written informed consent provided

Exclusion criteria

  • Current musculoskeletal injury or illness
  • Chronic metabolic, cardiovascular, or neurological disease
  • Regular medication use
  • Current use of dietary supplements or ergogenic aids
  • Smoking or excessive alcohol consumption
  • Known hypersensitivity to any study supplement ingredient

Exclusion criteria

-

Treatment and study plan

Placebo

Other

Placebo capsules administered daily during the 14-day intervention period

Taurine

Dietary Supplement

Taurine supplementation administered daily during the 14-day intervention period.

Caffeine

Dietary Supplement

Caffeine supplementation administered daily during the 14-day intervention period.

Phosphatidylserine

Dietary Supplement

Phosphatidylserine supplementation administered daily during the 14-day intervention period.

Primary outcomes

  1. 30 m sprint time

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Time required to complete a 30 m sprint, measured using electronic timing gates. The best result from three maximal sprint trials will be used for analysis.

    Unit of Measure: seconds

Secondary outcomes

  1. Change in sprint count between first and second half

    Time frame: After 14 days of supplementation, during the standardized football-specific training session

    Percentage decline in the number of sprints between the first and second half of the standardized football-specific training session. Sprint change will be calculated as: [(second half value - first half value) / first half value] × 100.

    Unit of Measure: percent

  2. Visual reaction time

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Mean response time to a visual stimulus, measured using a validated visual reaction time test.

  3. Auditory reaction time

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Mean response time to an auditory stimulus, measured using a computerized auditory reaction time test.

  4. Total distance covered

    Time frame: After 14 days of supplementation, during the standardized football-specific training session

    Total distance covered during the standardized football-specific training session, measured using a 10-Hz GPS tracking system. Unit of Measure:

    meters

  5. Relative distance

    Time frame: After 14 days of supplementation, during the standardized football-specific training session

    Distance covered per minute during the standardized football-specific training session, measured using a 10-Hz GPS tracking system. Unit of Measure:

    meters per minute

  6. High-speed running distance

    Time frame: After 14 days of supplementation, during the standardized football-specific training session

    Description:

    Distance covered at running speeds above 19.8 km/h during the standardized football-specific training session, measured using a 10-Hz GPS tracking system.

    Unit of Measure: meters

  7. Number of sprints

    Time frame: After 14 days of supplementation, during the standardized football-specific training session

    Total number of sprint efforts performed during the standardized football-specific training session. Sprinting will be defined as running speed above 25.0 km/h and measured using a 10-Hz GPS tracking system.

    Unit of Measure: number of sprints

  8. Player Load

    Time frame: After 14 days of supplementation, during the standardized football-specific training session

    External training load during the standardized football-specific training session, measured using triaxial accelerometry integrated with the GPS tracking system.

    Unit of Measure: arbitrary units

  9. Heart rate variability RMSSD

    Time frame: Daily during the 14-day supplementation period

    Resting heart rate variability assessed in the morning using the root mean square of successive differences between normal heartbeats. HRV will be measured using a heart rate sensor or wearable device under standardized resting conditions. Unit of Measure: milliseconds

  10. Sleep duration

    Time frame: Daily during the 14-day supplementation period

    Total sleep duration assessed using wearable sleep monitoring. Unit of Measure: hours

  11. Sleep efficiency

    Time frame: Daily during the 14-day supplementation period

    Percentage of time in bed spent asleep, assessed using wearable sleep monitoring.

    Unit of Measure: percent

  12. Subjective fatigue

    Time frame: Daily during the 14-day supplementation period

    Subjective fatigue assessed using the fatigue item of the Hooper Index questionnaire on a 1-7 scale, where higher values indicate greater fatigue. Unit of Measure: score on a scale

  13. Muscle soreness

    Time frame: Daily during the 14-day supplementation period

    Perceived lower-limb muscle soreness assessed using a 0-10 delayed onset muscle soreness scale, where higher values indicate greater soreness.

    Unit of Measure: score on a scale

  14. Stroop task reaction time

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Mean response time during a modified computerized Stroop task assessing cognitive fatigue, inhibitory control, sustained attention, and information processing speed. Unit of Measure: seconds

  15. Stroop task accuracy

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Percentage of correct responses during a modified computerized Stroop task. Unit of Measure: percent

  16. Stroop task error rate

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Number of incorrect responses during a modified computerized Stroop task. Unit of Measure: number of errors

  17. Perceived mental fatigue

    Time frame: Baseline and after 14 days of supplementation

    Subjective perceived mental fatigue assessed using a 0-10 visual analogue scale, where higher values indicate greater perceived mental fatigue. Unit of Measure: score on a 0-10 scale

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Vizja University in Warsaw

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Dose-Dependent Effects of Multi-Ingredient Supplementation on Physical Performance, Recovery, and Cognitive Function in Professional Football Players

Acronym: TCP-Soccer

Important dates

Study start
2026
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
May 22, 2026
Registry last updated
Jul 2, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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