Mental Fatigue and Soccer: Current Knowledge and Future Directions

Abstract

Fatigue is a complex state with multiple physiological and psychological origins. However, fatigue in soccer has traditionally been investigated from a physiological perspective, with little emphasis on the cognitive demands of competition. These cognitive demands may induce mental fatigue, which could contribute to the fatigue-related performance decrements observed during and after soccer matches. Recent research investigating the relationship between mental fatigue and soccer-specific performance supports this suggestion. This leading article provides an overview of the research in this emerging field, outlining the impact of mental fatigue on soccer-specific physical, technical, decision-making, and tactical performances. The second half of this review provides directions for future research in response to the limitations of the existing research. Emphasis is placed on translating the current body of knowledge into practical applications and developing a greater understanding of the mechanisms underpinning the negative impact of mental fatigue on soccer performance. A conceptual model is presented to help direct this future research.

Mental Fatigue in Soccer: A Systematic Review

“…On the other hand, researchers have also suggested specific-tasks to induce mental fatigue, as proposed by Coutinho et al 44 through activity of agility ladder drills while juggling a tennis ball to increase attentional demands. Although it is a motor task, the underrepresentation in soccer 28 and the limited possibility of control should be considered. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was applied to measure mental fatigue, mental effort, and motivation.…”

“…Future investigations may also benefit from investing in mechanisms that underpin mental fatigue on the soccer players performance. Although recent conceptual model proposed by Smith et al 28 clarifies a potential mechanistic pathway for the impact of mental fatigue on soccer performance, studies that prioritize controlling behavioral and physiological responses in cognitive tests are needed. In this sense, behavioral and physiological monitoring responses of cognitive tests will allow observing indicators of motivation, cognitive effort and players capacity' to support high cognitive load.…”

“…induces players to experience a mental effort. 27,28 Also, there are emotional, affective, and condición control (sin fatiga mental) y experimental (con fatiga mental). En total, fueron seleccionados seis estudios que atendieron los criterios establecidos, un estudio por búsqueda reversa y otro por indicación de los autores.…”

Shared Demands Between Cognitive and Physical Tasks May Drive Negative Effects of Fatigue: A Focused Review

“…Players utilize perceptual-cognitive skills, such as anticipation and decision making to select appropriate technical involvement and movements (e.g., action choice). Therefore, elite players typically display superior perceptual-cognitive skills, particularly in invasion team sports, wherein quick and accurate decisions are emphasized (Smith et al, 2018). Whilst endurance performance relies predominantly on planning and controlling resources, physical tasks that require the individual to read and react to their surroundings may also be impaired under cognitive load and fatigue.…”

“…Unlike reviews that have mainly focused on one type of exercise (e.g., endurance; McMorris et al, 2018), or sport (e.g., soccer; Smith et al, 2018), or have taken a broader view of the literature and eliminated studies based on the length of the cognitive task (Van Cutsem et al, 2017), this review on the research into physical performance after cognitive fatigue includes a range of physical tasks. With a specific focus on separating physical tasks into endurance-based tasks (e.g., running and cycling), anaerobic-based tasks (e.g., maximal voluntary contractions), and tasks that rely mostly on perceptualcognitive skills (e.g., tactical performance).…”