A systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence on the acute effects of caffeine on sport-specific skills, physical performance, and physiological function in female basketball players

Zike Zhang¹Mingyue Yin²Bopeng Qiu³Fanhao Meng⁴Bitai Wu⁵Yimin Wang^1*Zimao Cheng¹Xiaolong Wang¹Youheng Wang¹Zhe Lu¹Yunxiang Sun¹Jiali Lai¹

• ¹Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
• ²Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, China
• ³Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
• ⁴Beijing Sport University, Beijing, China
• ⁵Changsha University of Science and Technology, Changsha, China

Introduction: Previous original research and meta-analyses have shown that caffeine enhances performance in basketball. However, most studies on caffeine's effects in basketball have focused on male or mixed-gender samples, and there is currently no meta-analysis specifically on caffeine's impact on female basketball performance. This study aimed to synthesize current evidence to examine the effects of caffeine supplementation on multidimensional performance outcomes in female basketball players. Methods: A systematic search was conducted in May 2025 across PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, ProQuest, and EBSCO. Randomized crossover trials examining the effects of caffeine intake on performance in female basketball players were included. Methodological quality and risk of bias were assessed using the PEDro scale and the RoB 2 tool, and the certainty of evidence was evaluated using the GRADE approach. Results: Seven studies met the inclusion criteria, demonstrating overall high methodological quality and low risk of bias. The meta-analysis showed that caffeine intake did not exert statistically significant effects on sport-specific skills (shooting accuracy and dribble sprint performance), physical performance (jump height, agility, off-ball sprinting, power output, and anaerobic capacity), or physiological outcomes (perceived fatigue and physiological/biochemical markers) in female basketball players. Caffeine consumption was, however, associated with potential adverse effects, including insomnia, tachycardia, and headache. Although statistical significance was not reached for several outcomes, moderate effect sizes were observed for jump height (P = 0.08), off-ball sprint performance (P = 0.051), power output (P = 0.147), and physiological/biochemical markers (P = 0.052), suggesting that caffeine may exert a potential modulatory effect on performance. This is a provisional file, not the final typeset article Conclusion: Within a caffeine dose range of 2.1 to 9 mg/kg, encompassing ultra-low to high doses, this review did not observe statistically significant effects on multiple performance outcomes in female basketball players. However, effect sizes varied across performance measures and may be modulated by menstrual cycle–related physiological factors. Given the intermittent demands of basketball and the limited sample sizes of available studies, further research with larger cohorts and more rigorous study designs is warranted.