Football players’ preferences for anti-doping education: A cross-country study

Abstract

Research suggests that doping use is an underrecognized problem in football and is on the rise during the last years. Anti-doping education is one of the most important pillars in the fight against doping. The aim of the present study was to investigate football player's preferences for anti-doping education. Participants were 630 football players (456 players were males; 72.4%) from Norway (n = 302), Greece (n = 186) and Lithuania (n = 142). They were administered a questionnaire including questions on demographic information (e.g., age, gender, years of experience, trainings per week) and factual information related to players’ preferences about anti-doping education. Results showed that the majority of players weren't willing to receive anti-doping education, with females, older players and players from Lithuania and Greece reporting higher willingness. With respect to the preferences about education, most players preferred short explanatory videos and online education that would be applied to the whole team/club. Concerning the content, participants requested for information on health side-effects, and case studies with doped and clean athletes’ experiences. Male and older players, as well as players from Norway and Greece preferred online courses, while adolescent and female players and players from Lithuania preferred both online and group courses. The findings of the study provide valuable information for the development of tailor-made and effective anti-doping education.