Sleep, Sport, and Real Life

What a New Study Says About Rest for Players and Busy Households

If you are juggling kids, work, and a weekly training session, you already know sleep is precious. A new peer-reviewed study published in PLOS ONE (Cunha et al., 2025) helps explain why so many active people feel tired, even when they think they are getting “enough.” While the research focused on soccer, the patterns are highly relevant to LGFA players and every woman trying to perform on and off the pitch.

The short version

• Nearly half of adult players reported poor sleep quality and sleep deficit.
• Teenagers and adults typically needed about 40 minutes more sleep than they were getting.
• Poor sleep quality, evening-type body clocks, higher daytime sleepiness, and later finishing times for training were all linked with a higher risk of sleep deficit.
• Better sleep is not only about total hours. Quality matters and is closely tied to how alert you feel during the day.

At DFI Beds, this is exactly why our partnership with the Ladies Gaelic Football Association exists. ‘Sleep Better. Perform Better.’ is the campaign slogan because it reflects growing evidence that sleep underpins performance, recovery, mood, and decision-making for athletes and families alike.

What the study actually found

Researchers surveyed 864 footballers across age groups in Portugal using validated questionnaires:

• the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (sleep quality),
• the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (daytime sleepiness), and
• the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (chronotype).

Here are the headline results, in plain English:

• Adults struggled most. Among players aged 18 and over, 43% had poor sleep quality, 21% reported excessive daytime sleepiness, and 47% had a sleep deficit.
• Teens were close behind. Teenagers also showed a gap between what they needed and what they were getting.
• Kids fared better, but not perfectly. About one-third of children had a sleep deficit.
• Quality and quantity travel together. Worse sleep quality was strongly linked with shorter sleep duration and moderately linked with feeling sleepy the next day. In other words, fewer hours often meant worse-feeling sleep, and worse sleep meant more daytime yawns.
• How much more sleep did players say they needed? On average, teenagers needed 42 minutes more than they were getting, and adults needed 41 minutes more. Across the full sample, the shortfall was 31 minutes.
• What raised the risk of sleep deficit? Four factors stood out:

• Poor sleep quality
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Evening chronotype
• Later finishing times for training

A quick note on scope: 85% of participants were male, so the study could not meaningfully compare by sex. Still, the mechanisms it highlights apply widely. When your schedule pushes sleep late and short, performance suffers. This is true, whether you’re a Division 1 athlete or a mum fitting training around bedtime routines.

Why this matters for LGFA players and sporty families

Evening training is common in Gaelic games once work and school are out of the way. The study found that later training end times were associated with a higher chance of sleep deficit. That tracks with real life. Finish late, eat late, shower late, finally sit down, then try to fall asleep on cue. Your body is still revved up.

The research also shows that sleep quality is a big lever. That’s not just about a pitch-perfect mattress. It’s about routine, lighting, temperature, caffeine timing, and stress. But your sleep surface does matter. If your mattress is too firm, too soft, or past its best, it can reduce deep sleep, trigger tossing and turning, and push your total sleep time down.

Practical takeaways you can use this week

You don’t need a lab to improve sleep. Start here.

1. Bank the missing 40 minutes. The average adult and teen in the study needed about 40 minutes more. Set an earlier wind-down target two or three nights a week. Even 20 minutes helps.
2. Tidy the late-session gap. If you train in the evening, plan a short cooldown, a light snack, and screen-light cut-off to help your body switch from “go” to “sleep.”
3. Mind your chronotype. If you’re more of an evening person, try to keep early-morning commitments to a minimum after late training days. Protect the first hour after waking for natural light and hydration.
4. Chase quality, not just time. Cooler bedrooms, darker rooms, and consistent wake times pay off. So does managing caffeine after lunch.
5. Check your mattress honestly. If it’s dipping, noisy, or older than you’d like to admit, it can affect how long you stay asleep. Comfort that supports your spine helps you reach deeper, more restorative sleep.
6. Use short naps strategically. The study notes that extending sleep reduces daytime sleepiness. A 15–20 minute nap before school pickup or training can take the edge off without wrecking bedtime.
7. Teen bedrooms need special attention. Teenagers had the biggest nightly shortfall. Earlier wind-downs, less scrolling at night, and a better sleep setup can make a real difference during exam or championship season.

How DFI Beds is acting on this evidence

Our LGFA partnership is built on a simple belief: better sleep improves performance and wellbeing across the team, the squad, and the family at home. Here’s what that looks like in practice.

• Mattresses designed for real recovery. From supportive pocket springs to breathable foams and toppers that reduce pressure points, our goal is longer, higher-quality sleep.
• Choice for busy households. Ottoman storage for tight spaces, easy-clean fabrics, and fast delivery windows help you keep bedrooms calm and clutter-free. Less mess makes sleep easier.
• Honest guidance. We’ll never promise miracle fixes. We help you match comfort preference, body type, and budget to the right mattress so you sleep deeper, not just longer.
• Community education. Through LGFA touchpoints, we share practical sleep tips shaped by research like this study, so clubs and parents can build better routines around training.

A final word to the captains of the household

The study shows many players are a single small habit shift away from feeling sharper. For most adults and teens, the missing piece was about 40 minutes a night. Add in better sleep quality and a more supportive bed, and the gains compound. You recover faster. You make better decisions late in the game. You’re a little more patient at homework time. Everyone wins.

If you want help finding the right setup, pop into Newry or Dungannon, or browse online. Tell us how you train, how you sleep, and what your room is like. We’ll recommend what genuinely fits. Because sleep should feel like an advantage, not another thing on your list.

Study reference

Cunha, L. A., Marques, E. A., Brito, J., Lastella, M., & Figueiredo, P. (2025). High prevalence of poor sleep quality and sleep deficit: A study in children, adolescents, and adult soccer players. PLOS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0333774