Quantity and quality of sleep in young players of a professional football club

Purpose To investigate the quantity and quality of sleep hours in young athletes in a professional football club, to study if there is a significant relationship with mood state and subjective well-being, and to identify the relationship between sleep and quarterly academic performance. We also explored the relationship between sleep and quarterly academic performance. Method the study included 261 players of the various age group categories from football at Barcelona Football Club (average age:13.04 +/- 3.16). Participants maintained a sleep diary and completed questionnaires on their mood state and the quantity and quality of their sleep. Results 70% of the athletes slept less hours than recommended by the American National Sleep Foundation. Athletes with worse quantity and quality of sleep showed negative effects on academic results. Conclusions The results show that the majority of young players sleep less than recommended and show that those who sleep more hours obtain better academic results.