{"id":13954,"date":"2026-06-19T07:38:38","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T00:38:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/?p=13954"},"modified":"2026-06-19T07:38:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T00:38:40","slug":"how-messi-mbappe-and-haaland-use-their-brains-as-well-as-feet-to-gain-a-psychological-edge-at-the-world-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/how-messi-mbappe-and-haaland-use-their-brains-as-well-as-feet-to-gain-a-psychological-edge-at-the-world-cup\/","title":{"rendered":"How Messi, Mbappe and Haaland use their brains (as well as feet) to gain a psychological edge at the World\u00a0Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Norway\u2019s Erling Haaland celebrates scoring his side\u2019s opening goal during the World Cup group match against Iraq on June 16, 2026. (AP Photo\/Martin Meissner) AP Photo\/Martin Meissner<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Part of soccer\u2019s beauty lies in its unpredictability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Already in World Cup 2026, we have seen Morocco tie with five-time champion Brazil and Australia overturn the odds by beating Turkey. But few surprises will top a Cabo Verde team ranked 67th at the start of the tournament holding Spain \u2013 many pundits\u2019 pick for the title \u2013 to a 0-0 draw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what goes into deciding whether a team wins, draws or loses? Of course, the quality of the players and coaching staff matters. And recent advances in sports analytics, including real-time player geolocation metrics, have led to the adoption of data-driven in-game decisions. Top football teams increasingly rely on big data and predictive algorithms to gain an advantage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But sports psychology plays a big role, too. And that is where I come in. I have a passion for sports in general and soccer in particular \u2013 it is the game I grew up playing in Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, as a sport psychologist and director of the Global Sport Leadership Solutions Lab at Drexel University, I study how players and coaches can manage chaos on the pitch to strategically improve performance and win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below, I outline several modern psychological principles that are essential to all 48 teams battling it out in Mexico, Canada and the U.S. during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 steps for soccer success<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Disruption<\/strong> \u2013 It is true across all sports, and certainly in modern soccer, that the winning team will benefit from disrupting its opponent. Disruptive tactics can include brute-force tactical fouls, high-speed counterattacks that catch the opposition off balance, deceptive set pieces that create organized chaos, high-pressure tactics that force opponents into errors, and getting under the skin of opposition players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disrupting the organization and rhythm of the opposing team is both a mindset and a tactic that can lead to goal-scoring opportunities. A team that can disrupt an opponent\u2019s flow can often overturn a skill disadvantage or demoralize weaker teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attentional fitness<\/strong> \u2013 Scoring goals in international soccer is difficult. A great striker is worth his or her weight in gold. They not only possess exceptional dribbling and spectacular one-on-one skills but also strong \u201cattentional fitness,\u201d which requires cognitive efficiency and a work ethic to get into positions to score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Such players are celebrated for their \u201ccoolness\u201d and on-the-ball craft, but it is their psychological intelligence that makes them special. One of the first skills to break under pressure is the ability to focus. The quintessential goal scorer does not freeze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One could call it \u201cnerves of steel,\u201d but that is just a metaphor for managing multiple sources of attention simultaneously and efficiently. Strikers such as England\u2019s Harry Kane, France\u2019s Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 and Norway\u2019s Erling Haaland maintain attentional control under pressure. They lock into the moment when it matters most and seamlessly shift between tasks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Controlled mind-wandering<\/strong> \u2013 Mind-wandering is a spontaneous zoning out of your immediate surroundings. In sports, mind-wandering is often seen as negative because inattention at a crucial moment can lead to disaster. But it is difficult to maintain focus for 90-plus minutes during a soccer game. And new neuroimaging evidence suggests that in moments of mind-wandering, the brain is not at rest at all. Rather, it is just processing information differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As such, controlled mind-wandering, which involves active mental exploration, can be highly beneficial in performance sports \u2013 even if only for a few seconds. The best players seem to know when to focus and when to pull back. They sometimes look away from the ball and absorb a broader perspective of the game. Then, when a crucial game-scoring opportunity arises, they lock in their focus and are 100% present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Argentina captain Lionel Messi celebrates his country\u2019s 3-0 win over Algeria on June 16, 2026. AP Photo\/Reed Hoffmann<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Referee Wilton Sampaio, of Brazil, shows the red card to South Africa\u2019s Themba Zwane during the match between Mexico and South Africa on June 11, 2026. AP Photo\/Silvia Izquierdo<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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When researchers examined where Argentine great Lionel Messi looks, they found that his eyes are often off the ball. Common sense in soccer has been to keep your eyes on the ball, but new research suggests that the winner will also mind-wander and look away from the action. Messi\u2019s brain can seemingly do things many of his opponents\u2019 cannot; he appears to have world-class cognitive skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resilience (for referees)<\/strong> – Soccer is one of the most difficult sports to officiate. Not only must referees be in excellent physical condition, they must also be able to manage the game emotionally. This has become increasingly difficult, with professional players routinely simulating injuries and an offside rule that is interpreted to within fractions of an inch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then there is one of the most difficult and controversial cognitive decisions in all of sports: the penalty kick, awarded for committing a foul in one\u2019s own penalty box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the stakes so high and everyone watching, the modern World Cup referee must have exceptional multitasking, communications and management skills. Referees are part of the fabric of the match whether they want to be or not. Everybody is judging them \u2013 even more so in 2026, since referees are wearing cameras on their temples, so the viewing public can see the game from their point of view. The psychological toolbox of the 2026 World Cup referee is complex, but it has to start with a good dose of psychological resiliency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tactical creativity<\/strong> – Tactical creativity in soccer is related to finding solutions on the pitch to complex individual or team situations. It almost always relies on divergent thinking and is often surprising and original. Research has shown that creativity is within everyone\u2019s reach, including soccer players, especially if tactical creativity has been part of the training plan. As a result, the evolution of playing styles in elite soccer over the past few decades has shifted away from a structured, defense-heavy, possession-based system toward a modern, data-driven way to play based on pressing the opposing team high up the pitch. This requires players to take on multiple roles on the pitch. It requires a balance of both inspiration \u2013 or open-mindedness \u2013 and perspiration, or discipline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, to be creative one has to have the freedom to experiment; \u201cplay like children,\u201d U.S. head coach Mauricio Pochettino suggested. Tactical creativity is a key driver of the cognitive skill set that allows players such as Croatia\u2019s Luka Modri\u0107 and Belgium\u2019s Kevin De Bruyne to see several moves ahead. These modern soccer stars not only play soccer on a different level, but they also think soccer on a different level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the World Cup now underway, sports psychologists like myself \u2013 along with fans the globe over \u2013 can observe how athletes put some of these principles to work. And with any luck, the tournament will have \u201cwow\u201d moments of creativity that will be remembered for a lifetime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Eric Zillmer<\/a>, Professor of Neuropsychology, Drexel University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part of soccer\u2019s beauty lies in its unpredictability. Already in World Cup 2026, we have seen Morocco tie<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[276,63],"class_list":["post-13954","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-fifa","tag-football"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t