Fuelling the 48: How Footballers Survived the Heat of the World Cup

The 2026 World Cup was nothing short of spectacular, and the tournament was heating up in more ways than one this time around. Not only were goals flying in left, right and centre, but temperatures across Canada, Mexico and the USA have made games hotter than many players around the world are used to.

Hydration breaks were introduced into this World Cup to try and beat the heat, but how else did teams manage the high temperatures? Nutrition for footballers is about much more than eating a healthy diet, it's also about eating and drinking the right things at the right times to ensure the body has everything it needs to perform at its best, whatever the weather. 

If you’re ready to learn more, stick with OTE Sports as we dive into how football nutrition made this scorching World Cup one of the best ever, despite the heat. 

Understanding the Game: Why Does the Heat Matter? 

Let’s begin by discussing heat and why it affects players. Football is an intense sport that demands significant energy and stamina to compete at a professional level, but how do heat and humidity affect footballers’ performance?

The first impact that may come to mind is dehydration, and you’d be right in thinking that this problem becomes a bigger obstacle in the heat. We all sweat during exercise to regulate our body temperature, but in high temperatures, our bodies have to work even harder to produce enough sweat to compensate. 

To put this idea into numbers, footballers can lose 1-3 litres of water in the heat, so it’s easy to see how dehydration can have such an impact on performance. Water is vital for maintaining adequate blood volume, which delivers oxygen to both hard-working muscles and sweating skin. If fluid levels drop, the body has to make a choice, and it often prioritises keeping the body cool, leaving less capacity to supply working muscles and sustain high-intensity efforts, such as tracking back to defend.

In addition to dehydration, high temperatures can also increase footballers’ body temperature to the point where their muscle endurance becomes compromised. The warmer the body is, the harder it is for muscles to contract over the period of a 90-minute or even 120-minute match with extra time, and the more anaerobic the body’s energy production becomes. These factors deplete muscle energy stores more quickly, making it harder to kick, tackle, and jump as effectively as the match proceeds. 

Footballers burn 5-10% more calories in hotter weather, and they can lose up to 50% more water. This is why nutrition for top performance in football is so important, so let’s take a look at how fuelling the body is the antidote to hot weather.

The Secret to an Effective Football Matchday Hydration Strategy

How do football players stay hydrated in extreme heat? Drinking water is an effective way to top up the body’s fluid levels and ensure it has enough water to generate sweat and optimise blood flow. The importance of hydration, however, also lies in replenishing electrolytes lost through sweat. 

Electrolytes such as sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium, are really important for athletic performance and the efficiency of rehydration. Sodium, for example, plays a key role in maintaining the body’s extracellular fluid volumes, which affects blood volume and pressure, and electrolytes as a whole help direct fluids to the areas of the body that need them most. 

Water alone cannot meet the electrolyte deficit caused by sweating, and that’s where specially designed sports drinks play a pivotal role in hydration strategies. Products like hydration tablets are packed with electrolytes to help footballers replenish their stores during matches and rehydrate as efficiently as possible to mitigate the effects of hot weather. For everyday training, Hydro Tabs provide convenient electrolyte support, while the higher-strength Super Hydro formula is better suited to demanding match days, particularly in hot conditions or when sweat losses are high.