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Thinking While Playing: Exploring Cognitive Load and Passing Accuracy in Football Training.
Pedro Henrique de Almeida Oliveira1, Sarah da Glória Teles Bredt1, Guilherme de Oliveira Santos Silva1
1Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.
Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport
|December 15, 2025
Summary
High cognitive load impairs pass decision-making in young football players. However, moderate cognitive challenges, like counting up to two items, do not negatively affect performance, suggesting their use in training.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Cognitive Psychology
- Motor Learning
Background:
- Effective pass decision-making is crucial for young football players.
- Cognitive load, the mental effort used in processing information, can influence motor skill execution.
- Understanding how cognitive load impacts decision-making in football is vital for optimizing training strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of manipulated cognitive load on pass decision-making performance in U-14 football players.
- To determine the threshold of cognitive load that impairs decision-making accuracy.
- To evaluate the potential of dual-task training to enhance football-specific cognitive skills.
Main Methods:
- Twenty-four U-14 football players completed four conditions: control and three small-sided games with increasing cognitive load (dual-tasking).
- Cognitive load was manipulated by requiring players to count passes while memorizing increasing amounts of information.
- Pass decision-making accuracy was measured using a pass decision-making index, with pass-counting error rate as a manipulation check.
Main Results:
- A significant interaction between time and condition was found (p = .007).
- Pass decision-making accuracy decreased by 15% in the high cognitive load condition (T3) compared to the control.
- No significant performance differences were observed between the control condition and lower cognitive load conditions (T1, T2).
Conclusions:
- High cognitive load significantly impairs pass decision-making performance in young football players.
- Introducing up to two additional cognitive tasks does not hinder performance, suggesting its utility in training.
- These findings support the use of moderate dual-tasking as a training strategy to enhance cognitive-motor skills in developing footballers.
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