{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,4]],"date-time":"2026-09-04T17:18:50Z","timestamp":1788542330802,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,21]],"date-time":"2026-05-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779321600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100020469","name":"Universidad Cient\u00edfica del Sur","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100020469","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/04xr5we72","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Soccer involves high physiological demands that induce neuromuscular fatigue, muscle damage, inflammation, and oxidative stress, impairing recovery between training sessions and competitions. Polyphenols have been proposed as a nutritional strategy to modulate these responses; however, evidence in soccer players is limited and heterogeneous. This systematic review aimed to synthesize the evidence on the effects of polyphenol supplementation on post-exercise recovery in adult male soccer players. Methods: A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines, with a protocol registered in the Open Science Framework. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating polyphenol supplementation versus placebo on post-exercise recovery in adult soccer players were included. Searches were performed in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library up to April 2026. Risk of bias was assessed using RoB 2, and certainty of evidence using GRADE. Due to heterogeneity, a qualitative synthesis was conducted. Results: Eight RCTs were included. Interventions involved tart cherry juice, pomegranate juice, beetroot juice, curcumin, and tea extracts. Evidence was inconsistent for biomarkers of muscle damage, inflammation, and oxidative stress, with most studies reporting no significant differences versus placebo. In contrast, beneficial trends for perceptual outcomes, particularly reduced muscle soreness and improved subjective well-being, were mainly observed in studies using tart cherry juice, beetroot juice, and curcumin. Evidence for oxidative stress and functional recovery was limited and heterogeneous. Certainty of evidence was low for most outcomes and very low for oxidative stress and functional recovery. Conclusions: Polyphenol supplementation, particularly tart cherry juice, beetroot juice, and curcumin, may improve perceptual recovery in adult male soccer players, particularly by reducing muscle soreness and enhancing subjective well-being. However, evidence on physiological biomarkers and functional recovery remains inconsistent and of low certainty. Further well-designed RCTs are required to establish robust recommendations in competitive soccer.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu18101638","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,21]],"date-time":"2026-05-21T13:53:24Z","timestamp":1779371604000},"page":"1638","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Effect of Polyphenol Supplementation on Post-Exercise Recovery in Adult Male Soccer Players: A Systematic Review"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"given":"Ver\u00f3nica","family":"Silva D\u00edaz","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Grupo de Investigaci\u00f3n en Nutrici\u00f3n, Metabolismo y Ejercicio, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Carrera de Nutrici\u00f3n y Diet\u00e9tica, Universidad Cient\u00edfica del Sur, Lima 15067, Peru"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7239-960X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Antonio","family":"Castillo-Paredes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Grupo AFySE, Investigaci\u00f3n en Actividad F\u00edsica y Salud Escolar, Escuela de Pedagog\u00eda en Educaci\u00f3n F\u00edsica, Facultad de Educaci\u00f3n, Universidad de Las Am\u00e9ricas, Santiago 8370040, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5228-4370","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alexander Javier","family":"Iman Torres","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnolog\u00eda de Alimentos, Facultad de Industrias Alimentarias, Universidad Nacional de la Amazon\u00eda Peruana, Iquitos 16001, Peru"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anthony Enrique","family":"Alves Vargas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnolog\u00eda de Alimentos, Facultad de Industrias Alimentarias, Universidad Nacional de la Amazon\u00eda Peruana, Iquitos 16001, Peru"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7001-9004","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Eduardo","family":"Guzm\u00e1n-Mu\u00f1oz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Escuela de Kinesiolog\u00eda, Facultad de Salud, Universidad Santo Tom\u00e1s, Talca 3460000, Chile"},{"name":"Escuela de Pedagog\u00eda en Educaci\u00f3n F\u00edsica, Facultad de Educaci\u00f3n, Universidad Aut\u00f3noma de Chile, Talca 3460000, Chile"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0774-606X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jose Jairo","family":"Narrea Vargas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Grupo de Investigaci\u00f3n en Nutrici\u00f3n, Metabolismo y Ejercicio, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Carrera de Nutrici\u00f3n y Diet\u00e9tica, Universidad Cient\u00edfica del Sur, Lima 15067, Peru"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"115","article-title":"Technical performance during soccer matches of the Italian Serie A league: Effect of fatigue and competitive level","volume":"24","author":"Rampinini","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. 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