ArticleBMJ open2015
Use and abuse of medication during 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: a retrospective survey.
Article in BMJ open, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 36 citations in OpenAlex.
- Analgesic Use in Sports.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2023Pooled it
- Ibuprofen alters human testicular physiology to produce a state of compensated hypogonadism.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2018Trial
- Painkiller use in amateur football: high prevalence, but limited misuse.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Medical management of musculoskeletal pain in professional wheelchair basketball players: an evidence-based guide.Pain management · 2025Review
- Investigating Painkiller Use in Amateur Football: A Coach's Perspective.Journal of personalized medicine · 2024Article
- Use of pharmaceuticals amongst athletes tested by Anti-Doping Norway in a five-year period.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2023Article
- A Scoping Review of Non-Medical and Extra-Medical Use of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs).Drug safety · 2021Article
- Diclofenac Administration after Physical Training Blunts Adaptations of Peripheral Systems and Leads to Losses in Exercise Performance: In Vivo and In Silico Analyses.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Intra-articular Injection Administration in UK Ex-professional Footballers During Their Playing Careers and the Association with Post-career Knee Osteoarthritis.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2020Article
- Retrospective study of the use of medication and supplements during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2019Article
- Abuse of Prescription Drugs in the Context of Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS): A Systematic Review.Brain sciences · 2018Review
- Endurance Performance is Influenced by Perceptions of Pain and Temperature: Theory, Applications and Safety Considerations.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2018Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo examine the use of medication of top-level male players during the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.
designRetrospective survey. PARTICIPANTS/INFORMATION: 736 top level players.
settingThe teams' physicians disclosed a list of the medications used by each player within 72 h before each match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil. OUTCOME MEASURES: Average number of medications used per player per match or during the tournament; average number and percentage of players using at least one medication per match or during the tournament.
results67.0% of all players took various types of medication during the tournament. The most used medications during the tournament were non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), by 54.2% of all players, followed by analgaesics (12.6%); β-2 agonists were only used by 0.5%. On average, 0.8 medications per player were used before each match. More players were reported taking medications during the knockout round than during the qualification round (0.36±0.48 vs 0.49±0.50, p<0.001). Players from the South American and Asian Confederations took twice as many medications per match as players from the African Confederation (1.17±1.55 and 1.01±1.26 vs 0.48±0.69, both p<0.001).
conclusionsThere was high use of NSAIDs during the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Although the intake of NSAIDs per match (0.35±0.46 vs 0.31±0.48, p<0.01) in the 2014 FIFA World Cup decreased compared to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the average use was still higher than in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and the average number of all used medications per player remained the same level as 4 years prior, with all its implications for the player's health. More efforts need to be undertaken worldwide in order to reduce the administration of medications in sports, through continuous education for players, starting from a young age, as well as for doctors and paramedics.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.