LONDON, June 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As England prepare for a summer of international football, Lucozade and The Football Association are revealing how player preparation continues to evolve to meet the demands of the modern game. Central to that is Lucozade Elite, a new high-carbohydrate liquid fuel pouch developed exclusively for England teams through the partners' long-standing collaboration.
With longer matches, increasingly congested schedules and the challenge of competing in warmer conditions placing greater demands on athletes, hydration, fuelling and recovery have become increasingly important components of performance. Sports science research shows that a loss of sweat equivalent to more than 2% of body mass can have detrimental effects on performance, while mean sweat losses of 2–2.5 litres have been observed during exercise in hot conditions, with some athletes losing as much as 4 litres*.
England teams' performance data also highlights the demands placed on modern players, with hydration and fuelling requirements varying considerably between individuals and environments, while opportunities to consume fluids and carbohydrates during competition can often be limited. As a result, performance nutrition teams continue to explore practical ways to support athletes before, during and after competition, particularly when opportunities to consume carbohydrates during play can be restricted.
Developed through collaboration between Lucozade's R&D specialists and performance nutrition team at the Football Association, Lucozade Elite is a high-carbohydrate electrolyte solution in a 350ml liquid serving. The pouch was created specifically for elite football environments and provides a concentrated carbohydrate liquid in a practical format for use during training and competition.
The innovation forms part of a wider hydration, fuelling and recovery approach used across England teams, alongside Lucozade Sport, Lucozade Sport Energy Gels and frozen Lucozade Sport products.
In exploring ways to support athlete fuelling during competition, England's performance nutrition team found inspiration in a familiar piece of football culture. The original Lucozade Sport pouch was a recognisable sight on football touchlines throughout the 1990s. While Lucozade Elite is an entirely new Fuelling solution exclusively available to the England team, the practicality of the original pouch's squeezable liquid format remains a great solution for elite football environments.
Dr Chris Rosimus, Men's Lead Performance Nutritionist at The Football Association, said: "As the game continues to evolve, performance teams are constantly looking at practical ways to support players in training and competition. Hydration, fuelling and recovery all play an important role, particularly when players are operating in demanding schedules, challenging environments and high-intensity competition.
"One of the areas we explored was how players could consume carbohydrates during competition. The original Lucozade Sport pouch demonstrated how practical a squeezable liquid format could be. That insight helped inspire an entirely new solution developed specifically for the demands of modern football."
Matthew Riches, Head of Sponsorship at Lucozade, said: "The demands placed on elite footballers continue to evolve, and our partnership with The Football Association gives us a unique opportunity to understand those challenges first-hand. Lucozade Elite is the result of close collaboration between our R&D team and performance nutrition practitioners supporting England teams.
"For decades, Lucozade has been part of football culture. It's fitting that a familiar part of that heritage helped inspire an innovation developed for the modern game."
The announcement is supported by new film featuring Jude Bellingham, exploring the role preparation, hydration and fuelling play in modern football performance.
Jude Bellingham said: "Football is demanding enough on its own, but when you're playing regularly and at the highest level, the small details become even more important. Everything around preparation, hydration and fuelling has to be right so you can perform consistently throughout a game. The right preparation can make a big difference."
*Lucozade Elite is a carbohydrate solution that contributes to the improvement of physical performance during high intensity and long-lasting physical exercise in trained adults. It is not commercially available and has been developed exclusively for use by the England teams.
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Notes to Editors
About Lucozade
Lucozade is one of the UK's most recognisable soft drinks brands, helping people bring energy to the moments that matter since 1927. Today, the Lucozade range includes Lucozade Energy and Lucozade Sport, with products designed to support active lifestyles through hydration and energy solutions.
Lucozade Sport was launched in 1990 and is an isotonic sports drink providing carbohydrates and electrolytes to help enhance hydration and maintain performance during endurance exercise. Lucozade continues to work with elite athletes, teams and organisations across sport, combining sports science, hydration expertise and product innovation.
Lucozade is part of Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I, one of the UK's leading branded soft drinks businesses.
About Dr. Christopher Rosimus
Dr. Christopher Rosimus is the Men's Lead Performance Nutritionist at The Football Association, where he leads the strategic direction of performance nutrition across the men's pathway and provides delivery support to the senior teams. He has more than 16 years' experience supporting elite athletes across elite football, international cricket, cycling and squash.
About Suntory Beverage & Food Great Britain and Ireland
Suntory Beverage & Food Great Britain and Ireland (SBF GB&I) was established in 2014. We're proud to be part of the Japan-based Suntory Group, a family-owned business with its inspiring 120-year heritage and we are guided by Shinjiro Torii's founding spirit. SBF GB&I is made up of 695 passionate people working on iconic brands including Lucozade, Ribena and Orangina. Suntory's purpose is to 'Inspire the brilliance of life by creating rich experiences for people, in harmony with nature.' We embrace our values of 'Growing for Good', 'Yatte Minahare' and 'Giving Back to Society.' Read more about our company, its values and our Growing for Good sustainability plan here.
For further information, please visit: suntorybfe.com/gbi or follow @SuntoryBF_GBI
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