Boost or bust? A randomized crossover study on pre-exercise caffeine supplementation for fatigue management in basketball

The aim of this study was to to assess the effect of pre-exercise caffeine intake (CAF) on fatigue and recovery in basketball. Using a randomized crossover design, 14 amateur male players completed two basketball-specific training sessions (in-season phase, February–March 2024), preceded by CAF (3 mg/kg body weight) or placebo ingestion (CON). Countermovement jump height, 10- and 20-m sprint times, heart rate variability (Ln-rMSSD), static and dynamic muscle soreness, and perceived fatigue were recorded at pre-training, post-training and 24 h post-training to evaluate the effectiveness of caffeine supplementation. The results showed no significant differences between CAF and CON at corresponding time points for any variable (P > 0.05). Regarding the effect of time, the main findings indicate that countermovement jump (average percentage change [%∆] = –7% to –10%) and Ln-rMSSD (%∆ = –33% to –54%) decreased at post-training compared with all other time points (P < 0.001, effect size = 1.41–1.98), while 10-m sprint times deteriorated from pre-to-post-training (P = 0.029, effect size = 0.69, %∆ = –2%). Similarly, muscle soreness (%∆ = +171%) and perceived fatigue (%∆ = +156%) increased from pre-to-post-training in both interventions (P ≤ 0.006, r = 0.57–0.61), with static soreness in CON (%∆ = +127%) and dynamic soreness in CAF (%∆ = +139%) remaining higher than pre-training levels up to 24 h post-training (P ≤ 0.010, r = 0.53–0.58). These findings suggest that pre-exercise caffeine intake did not significantly affect markers of fatigue in amateur basketball players, either acutely or 24 h post-training.