Creatine for soccer players: what the evidence says
Summary
What is it? A look at whether creatine improves the performance of soccer players. The main source is a 2026 systematic review of 41 studies [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. It was checked against an earlier meta-analysis of 9 trials [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 and two of the trials in that meta-analysis [3]Effect of low dose, short-term creatine supplementation on muscle power output in elite youth soccer players. Yáñez-Silva A, Buzzachera CF, Piçarro IDC, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2017[4]Creatine supplementation during resistance training in college football athletes. Bemben MG, Bemben DA, Loftiss DD, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2001. See also Creatine.
Why would I need it? It matters if you play or coach soccer and are deciding whether creatine is worth taking.
Is it useful? Creatine has not been shown to reliably improve soccer performance. Some trials found better repeated sprints, anaerobic power or strength, but the results did not agree, and the certainty of the evidence was very low for every outcome group [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. Body weight often went up, by 0.4 to 3.6 kg [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
FAQ
Is creatine proven to improve soccer performance? No. Some trials found benefits for sprints, power or strength, but the evidence is inconsistent and of very low certainty [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Didn't a meta-analysis find a large benefit for anaerobic power? A 2019 meta-analysis did, on the Wingate cycling test (SMD 2.26) [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. But the result came from two small trials, one of them in American football players [4]Creatine supplementation during resistance training in college football athletes. Bemben MG, Bemben DA, Loftiss DD, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2001, and in the soccer trial the difference against placebo was not significant [3]Effect of low dose, short-term creatine supplementation on muscle power output in elite youth soccer players. Yáñez-Silva A, Buzzachera CF, Piçarro IDC, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2017.
Does creatine help endurance in soccer? No consistent benefit was found [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry[2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019.
Will I gain weight on creatine? Weight gain was common, from 0.4 to 3.6 kg where it was reported, mostly after loading [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Does creatine speed up recovery between matches? The review found no evidence that it does [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
What dose was used in the studies? Most often 20 g a day, or 0.3 g per kg, for 4 to 7 days, or 3 to 10 g a day for longer periods. The review could not name a best dose [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Article
Does creatine make soccer players faster?
Not in a consistent way. Some trials reported better repeated-sprint results with creatine than with placebo. Many others found no difference between the groups, or found a change only inside the creatine group [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. A change inside one group does not prove an effect, because the placebo group may also improve with training.
Does creatine improve power and strength?
Some trials say yes, but not all. Anaerobic power means power in short all-out efforts, such as the 30-second Wingate cycling test. Some trials found a benefit for selected Wingate results, others found none [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. For strength, one trial in 14 female college players found larger gains in bench press and squat strength than placebo, with 15 g a day for 1 week and then about 5 g a day for 12 weeks [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
The reviews disagree here. A 2019 meta-analysis of 9 trials found a large benefit on anaerobic tests (standardized mean difference, SMD, 1.23; 95% confidence interval, CI, 0.55 to 1.91) [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. The SMD is the size of an effect in units that let different tests be compared, and the CI is the range in which the true value probably lies. The 2026 review, with 41 studies, found these results mixed and of very low certainty [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. The newer and larger review is the stronger evidence. The next section shows why the 2019 result is weak.
Why the 2019 meta-analysis found a large benefit
The 2019 meta-analysis pooled 9 double-blind randomised trials with 168 players: 118 men and 50 women, with a mean age of 20.3 years [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. It grouped the tests by the energy system they use most [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019:
| Test group | SMD (95% CI) | Trials behind it | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aerobic tests | -0.05 (-0.37 to 0.28) | 5 [2 Figure 3]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | no effect |
| Strength | 0.50 (-0.15 to 1.14) | 1, in American football players [2 Figure 4]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | not significant |
| Single jump | 0.14 (-0.12 to 0.39) | 5 [2 Figure 4]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | not significant |
| Single sprint | 0.06 (-0.70 to 0.81) | 3 [2 Figure 4]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | not significant |
| Agility | -0.11 (-0.83 to 0.61) | 2 [2 Figure 4]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | not significant |
| Repeated sprints | 0.26 (-0.13 to 0.65) | 3 [2 Figure 5]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | not significant |
| Wingate test | 2.26 (1.40 to 3.11) | 2 [2 Figure 5]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 | large, significant |
So the only significant result is the Wingate test, and it has two problems:
- One of the two trials did not study soccer players. It studied 25 NCAA Division I football athletes at the University of Oklahoma: American football players who did 9 weeks of resistance training [4]Creatine supplementation during resistance training in college football athletes. Bemben MG, Bemben DA, Loftiss DD, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2001.
- The soccer trial found no difference against placebo. 19 young male soccer players took 0.03 g of creatine per kg a day, or placebo, for 14 days. Peak and mean power rose by 8% with creatine and by 3% to 4% with placebo, but the difference in change between the groups was not significant (P = 0.35 and P = 0.49) [3]Effect of low dose, short-term creatine supplementation on muscle power output in elite youth soccer players. Yáñez-Silva A, Buzzachera CF, Piçarro IDC, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2017. The 2026 review read this trial the same way [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
The meta-analysis also counted each test as a separate data set, even when several came from one trial [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. For example, the American football trial appears 9 times in the strength group [2 Figure 4]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. This counts the same players more than once and can make the confidence interval narrower than it should be.
Does creatine help jumping, dribbling or kicking?
The results are mixed. Some studies found better jump height or dribbling times, others found no change [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. Kicking accuracy did not improve in the studies that measured it [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Does creatine help endurance or change of direction?
No consistent benefit was found. Studies of endurance tests, such as treadmill tests, found no improvement [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. The 2019 meta-analysis found no effect on aerobic tests (SMD -0.05; 95% CI -0.37 to 0.28) [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. Studies of change-of-direction tests found results that were null or did not agree [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Does creatine help recovery?
The evidence does not show this. Results for the fatigue index (how much power drops over repeated sprints), blood lactate, heart rate and muscle-damage markers were mostly null or did not agree [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Does creatine make soccer players gain weight?
Often, yes. In 16 of the 23 studies that measured body composition, body weight went up in the creatine group, by 0.4 to 3.6 kg where it was reported [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry. Not every study showed a difference against the control group [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
Who was studied?
| Item | What the review included |
|---|---|
| Study type | Systematic review of controlled trials; no meta-analysis [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| Studies | 41 studies in 45 reports: 28 randomised parallel-group, 2 randomised crossover, 11 non-randomised or with allocation that could not be checked [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| People | Male and female soccer players, adolescents to professionals; mostly men; most studies from Brazil, Spain and Iran [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| Performance outcomes | 36 studies, 659 players [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| Body composition outcomes | 23 studies, 460 players [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| Recovery and fatigue outcomes | 26 studies, 544 players [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| Form | Mostly creatine monohydrate [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
| Result | Some positive findings for repeated sprints, anaerobic power and strength; very low certainty for all outcome groups [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry |
Limits of this evidence
- Very low certainty. GRADE, a standard method to rate how much a body of evidence can be trusted, gave very low certainty for performance, body composition and recovery [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
- Risk of bias. Of the 28 randomised parallel-group studies, 14 had a high risk of bias, 2 had some concerns and 12 had a low risk. All 11 non-randomised studies had a serious risk of bias [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
- Small studies and different methods. Many trials had small numbers of players, and doses, durations and tests differed, so the results could not be combined [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
- Few women. Only a small number of studies included female players [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
- Search end. The search ended on 15 May 2025 [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
- Conflicts of interest. The review had no specific funding. Several authors reported links to creatine makers or supplement brands [1]Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 20264 authors declare ties to industry.
- The older meta-analysis. Its large Wingate result rests on two trials, one outside soccer [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019[4]Creatine supplementation during resistance training in college football athletes. Bemben MG, Bemben DA, Loftiss DD, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2001, and its abstract gives a low dose that is 10 times smaller than the dose the trial used: "3 mg/kg/day" instead of 0.03 g per kg a day [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019[3]Effect of low dose, short-term creatine supplementation on muscle power output in elite youth soccer players. Yáñez-Silva A, Buzzachera CF, Piçarro IDC, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2017. Its authors declared no conflicts of interest [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019.
Talk to a doctor before you start a supplement, especially if you take medicines or are pregnant.
Verification
Checked on 2026-11-09. The 2019 meta-analysis and the trial of 19 young soccer players were read in full text, the American football trial as an abstract.
| Claim | Result | What the check found |
|---|---|---|
| No consistent endurance benefit | Verified | A 2019 meta-analysis of 9 trials found no effect on aerobic tests [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 |
| Sprint, power and strength results are mixed | Partly verified | The 2019 meta-analysis found no clear benefit on repeated sprints, single sprints, jumps and strength, but a large benefit on anaerobic tests [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 |
| 2019 meta-analysis: large benefit on the Wingate test (SMD 2.26) | Contradicted | The result rests on two trials [2 Figure 5]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019. One studied American football players [4]Creatine supplementation during resistance training in college football athletes. Bemben MG, Bemben DA, Loftiss DD, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2001. In the other, the difference against placebo was not significant for peak power (P = 0.35), mean power (P = 0.49) or total work (P = 0.88) [3]Effect of low dose, short-term creatine supplementation on muscle power output in elite youth soccer players. Yáñez-Silva A, Buzzachera CF, Piçarro IDC, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2017 |
| 2019 meta-analysis: strength data from soccer players | Contradicted | All 9 strength data sets come from the American football trial [2 Figure 4]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019[4]Creatine supplementation during resistance training in college football athletes. Bemben MG, Bemben DA, Loftiss DD, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2001 |
| 2019 meta-analysis: effective low dose of 3 mg per kg a day for 14 days | Contradicted | The trial used 0.03 g (30 mg) per kg a day [3]Effect of low dose, short-term creatine supplementation on muscle power output in elite youth soccer players. Yáñez-Silva A, Buzzachera CF, Piçarro IDC, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2017, as the meta-analysis's own Table 2 says [2 Table 2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 |
| Loading of about 20 g a day for a few days | Verified | 20 to 30 g a day for 6 to 7 days in the 2019 meta-analysis [2]Effects of Creatine Supplementation on Athletic Performance in Soccer Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Mielgo-Ayuso J, Calleja-Gonzalez J, Marqués-Jiménez D, et al. Nutrients, 2019 |
| Weight gain of 0.4 to 3.6 kg | Not verified for soccer players | No second soccer source gives this range |
See also
Sources
Creatine supplementation in soccer players: a systematic review. Ashtary-Larky D, Candow DG, Antonio J, et al. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2026
- Meta-analysis · About this source
- Randomized controlled trial · About this source