Sleep deprivation can impact player performance in the World Cup

Sleep deprivation was pointed out by player Thiago Silva, captain of the Brazilian national team, as one of the reasons that hindered the team in the game against Switzerland, this Monday (28). The match ended 1-0 and qualified Brazil for the round of 16.

According to the defender, the team’s first match in the World Cup, which took place at 10 pm (local time) last Thursday (24) against Serbia, was detrimental to Tite’s team as Switzerland had more time between one game and another. “They had a little more recovery time. They played in the afternoon and we played at night (in the first round). We lost a night of sleep, we know how much that influences”, said the player in an interview with the Sportv channel.

The doctor specializing in sleep medicine, Luciane Luna de Mello, from the Sleep Institute, in São Paulo, explains that sleep is not the same as that of a player who plays in the afternoon, like Switzerland in the first round, and another who plays at night. “To be able to sleep, the athlete needs at least two hours to lower his body temperature. As they have a lot of stimulation even after the game, this can take up to three or four hours.”

“Athletes work with performance and sleep has everything to do with that. Whoever sleeps better will certainly have a better performance on the field than the opponent who didn’t sleep”, says the expert.

Athletes need more sleep

Álvaro Pentagna, neurology coordinator at Hospital Vila Nova Star and responsible for the Sleep Outpatient Clinic at Hospital das Clínicas, agrees that sleep deprivation can impact performance on the field. “While any adult should get between seven and eight and a half hours of sleep, some studies show that an athlete should get between nine and ten,” he says.

It’s not just the number of hours that matters, though. You need to pay attention to the quality of sleep. “Until the match is over, going to the hotel, having dinner, resting, sleeping and having that restful sleep takes time. They go to sleep after 3 am and that is harmful because, even if they sleep until noon, their sleep during the day is not of the same quality as we have at night. In addition to the light, there is noise, and sleep is impaired”, he explains.

The doctor points out that those who do not sleep well can have several losses throughout the day. “The person is more irritable, more moody, less attentive and, of course, more tired. A player after a match needs to eat and sleep well. He needs bone, muscle and brain recovery to be more focused on the next training session and in the next game”, says the neurologist.

next match

This Friday (2) the team will play again at 4 pm (Brasília time; 10 pm local time), which again will make the players have less time to sleep. Brazil will face Cameroon to try to guarantee the first place in Group G. If they finish in first place, they will play again on Monday (5) and, if they are second, on Tuesday (6).

Mello also claims that what could help is to reduce stimuli from the moment they leave the stadium towards concentration. “The ideal would be to go on the bus in a darker environment, with little noise. But we know that this does not happen and that they go on drumming, making music and celebrating. Therefore, it takes even longer for them to sleep.”

Upon arrival, she advises that the best thing is for players to reduce conversations, take a relaxing bath and lie down in a dark room, without using the TV and, of course, leave the cell phone aside. “Because they’re young, they can sleep in any position and will have a deep sleep due to both adrenaline and endorphins,” she says.

Pentagna says that not all athletes feel the impact of less sleep in the same way. “Each one reacts in a different way, but in one way or another it ends up having an impact. The ideal would be a longer interval between games so that they could have a better recovery”, he evaluates.