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Soccer players are many times smarter than many other people
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Although repeatedly hitting your head against a ball is unlikely to be good for your brain, playing on a soccer team does improve your intellectual abilities. According to Swedish researchers, soccer players are many times smarter than many other people.
During the study, scientists analyzed the following cognitive functions in professional football players: memory functions, creative thinking, and the ability to do several things at once. As it turned out, the athletes received higher scores compared to other subjects who do not play football. In addition, football players were among the 5% of the smartest people on the planet.
Scientists explain this by the fact that football players constantly have to adapt to the conditions around them in order to play successfully. These constant changing processes train their brain, which allows them to quickly switch from one strategy to another, keep a large number of elements in their head, discard irrelevant information and instantly make important decisions. Along with running speed, a good football player must have developed running speed and mental acuity.
"People think that kicking a ball doesn't require much brainpower. But this study has shown that professional football requires people with not only good physical fitness, but also intellectual capabilities," the experts noted.
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