Foo Wee Lun, Tester Emma, Close Graeme L, Cronin Colum J, Morton James P
Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences (RISES), Liverpool John Moores University, Byrom Street, Liverpool, L3 3AF, UK.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, Enfield, London, EN2 9AP, UK.
Sports Med. 2025 Apr;55(4):1009-1022. doi: 10.1007/s40279-024-02134-w. Epub 2024 Nov 3.
Professional soccer players' self-reported dietary intakes often do not meet recommended sport nutrition guidelines. Although behaviour change models have previously explored barriers and enablers to nutritional adherence, the cultural factors influencing players' nutritional habits also warrant investigation. Accordingly, we aimed to explore players' perceptions of the nutrition culture within the professional soccer environment.
An interpretivist paradigm, which emphasises that reality is subjectively and socially constructed, underpins this study. Qualitative, face-to-face semi-structured interviews (comprising open-ended questions) were conducted with purposively sampled male soccer players from the English Premier League (EPL) (five British, five migrant; mean age: 26 ± 6 years; mean EPL appearances: 106 ± 129). Data were abductively analysed using thematic analysis according to Bourdieu's concepts of habitus, capital, field and doxa practices.
This study revealed five key themes: (1) players' habitus, as shaped by familial, ethnic and religious backgrounds, influences their dietary habits; (2) social capital, via managers (head coaches), teammates and online influences, impact players' dietary practices; (3) the increase in both soccer clubs' and players' economic capitals has advanced nutrition provision; (4) an unequal distribution of economic capitals has led to hierarchical practice in the performance nutrition field with personalised nutrition being somewhat enacted at the higher levels; and (5) body composition measurement is a 'doxic' practice in professional soccer that warrants challenge.
Soccer players' habitual nutritional practices are influenced by personal upbringing and the club context, including economic resources and social capital from managers. The performance nutrition field within professional soccer is also shaped by stakeholders' doxic beliefs surrounding the perceived optimal body composition of players, with managers exerting social capital.
职业足球运动员自我报告的饮食摄入量往往未达到推荐的运动营养指南。尽管行为改变模型此前已探讨了营养依从性的障碍和促进因素，但影响运动员营养习惯的文化因素也值得研究。因此，我们旨在探究职业足球环境中运动员对营养文化的认知。
本研究采用解释主义范式，该范式强调现实是主观和社会建构的。对来自英超联赛（EPL）的男性足球运动员进行了定性的、面对面的半结构化访谈（包括开放式问题），这些运动员是经过有目的抽样选取的（五名英国球员，五名外籍球员；平均年龄：26±6岁；平均英超出场次数：106±129次）。根据布迪厄的惯习、资本、场域和信念实践概念，采用主题分析法对数据进行溯因分析。
本研究揭示了五个关键主题：（1）由家庭、种族和宗教背景塑造的运动员惯习影响他们的饮食习惯；（2）社会资本，通过教练、队友和网络影响，对运动员的饮食行为产生作用；（3）足球俱乐部和运动员经济资本的增加推动了营养供应；（4）经济资本的不平等分配导致了运动营养领域的等级实践，个性化营养在较高水平有所体现；（5）身体成分测量在职业足球中是一种“信念”实践，值得质疑。
足球运动员的习惯性营养行为受到个人成长经历和俱乐部环境的影响，包括经济资源和教练的社会资本。职业足球中的运动营养领域也受到利益相关者围绕运动员理想身体成分的信念的塑造，教练发挥着社会资本的作用。
