Sport / Soccer
Electrolytes For Soccer
A 90-minute soccer match plus warm-up is close to two hours of stop-start running, and studies of professional players have measured 1.7 to 3.1 litres of sweat lost in a single 90-minute session. LYTES stocks Redmond Re-Lyte, whose tub works out at $1.00–1.25 AUD a serve, and Sodii, made in Australia with Australian salt, from $2.75 AUD for a single sachet. Free metro shipping applies over $149 AUD, and every order dispatches from Wollongong in 12–48 hours.
What goes wrong on match day
The last 15 minutes
Late in a match is where sweat losses have stacked up for well over an hour, and it is also where most players feel the game get away from them. Cramping late in a game is a signal of high sweat sodium loss, not a sign you didn't train hard enough.
Water only at half-time
In a study of professional players training in the heat, those drinking only water replaced virtually none of the sodium they sweated out. Plain water puts back fluid, not salt.
A cool winter game still costs you
Elite players training at 5°C still lost about 1.7 litres of sweat in 90 minutes. Winter football feels easy on the body, but the sodium still goes out with the sweat.
Summer pre-season stacks up
Pre-season in an Australian summer often means hot sessions, sometimes two a day, on top of weekend trial games. Sodium you don't replace after one session carries straight into the next.
Sweat and sodium across a 90-minute matchTypical ranges measured in professional players across a 90-minute session, applied to a match plus warm-up. Pick the conditions to see what a game costs you, and what it takes to replace it.
Sweat rate1.4 litres per hour
Sodium in sweat1,130 mg per litre
Fluid lost over 1.75 hours2.4 litres
4 × 750 ml bottles
These figures come from professional adult players, so most community and junior players will sit at or below them. Sweat rate and sweat sodium vary widely between players, even on the same pitch in the same session. Use these figures as a starting point, not a prescription.
Sodium lost in the match
2,768
milligrams
Roughly 2.8 serves of a 1000 mg sodium electrolyte serve, or about 1,582 mg per hour across the match.
Plain water replaces none of it.
Sweat rates and sweat sodium come from Loughborough University studies of professional footballers across a 90-minute session: 17 elite players training at 5°C lost 1.69 litres of sweat with a mean sweat sodium of 42.5 mmol/L (about 980 mg/L) — Maughan et al., Journal of Sports Sciences, 2005; 24 Premier League players training at 24–29°C lost 2.03 litres with 49 mmol/L sodium (about 1,130 mg/L) — Maughan et al., International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 2004; and 22 players in a match at 34°C lost 3.1 litres of sweat — Kurdak et al., Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 2010. The hot preset uses the warm-day sodium concentration because Rollo et al. (Nutrients, 2021) found elite players' sweat sodium concentration did not differ between cool and hot conditions, while sweat rate did. Hourly sodium replacement guidance is the American College of Sports Medicine's position stand on exercise and fluid replacement: 300–600 mg sodium per hour for exercise lasting over an hour. See a sports dietitian for individual advice.
Brand in focus
Redmond Re-Lyte
810mg sodium. Real salt from an ancient seabed. Zero sugar. The best-value tub in our range, and the one to reach for across a season of training nights and weekend games.
- 810-1000 mg sodium per serve, from Redmond Real Salt
- Zero sugar, naturally sweetened with stevia
- $1.00-$1.25 a serve in the tub - our best-value tub format
- Free metro shipping over $149
- Dispatched same day before 12pm AEST
Brand in focus
Sodii
1000mg sodium. Australian salt. Zero sugar. Made in Australia with Australian salt, in single sachets that carry a full 1000 mg sodium serve to the ground for kick-off and half-time.
- 1000mg sodium per serve - matches LMNT, the highest we stock
- Made in Australia with Australian salt
- Zero sugar, naturally sweetened with stevia
- Free metro shipping over $149
- Dispatched same day before 12pm AEST
Also stocked for soccer
LMNT Citrus Salt Hydration Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Raspberry Salt Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Big Fruity Pack - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Watermelon Salt Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Raw Unflavoured Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Orange Salt Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Variety Pack - 12 Sticks
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LMNT Grapefruit Salt Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Lemonade Salt Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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$64.95
LMNT Single Stick
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$3.35
LMNT Taster Pack - 10 Sticks
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$32.95
LMNT Chocolate Salt Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Big Variety Pack - 30 Sticks
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LMNT Mango Chilli Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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$64.95
LMNT Chocolate Caramel Electrolyte Mix - 30 Sticks
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Lemonade + Iced Tea - 30 Sticks
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$64.95
Shop by formatWhat suits the kit bag on match day isn't always what suits a week of training nights. Pick the format that fits how you play.
Sticks & sachets
One stick or sachet into your bottle in the change room, another at half-time. Nothing to measure, and a handful fits in a kit bag next to shin pads and boots.
Best for match day and away gamesTubs
Best value per serve and scoopable to the dose you want. Mix bottles at home across a week of training nights, pre-season sessions and a weekend game.
Best for training weeks and summer pre-seasonCapsules
Re-Lyte capsules let you take sodium with plain water from the bench or the club tap, without changing the taste of your drink. Handy if you'd rather not flavour your bottle during the game.
Best for players who prefer plain water on the sidelineDon't forget the other half of fuelling
Electrolytes replace what you sweat out. Carbs replace what you burn.
A full 90 minutes of repeated sprints burns through carbohydrate as well as salt, and sodium alone won't top that back up. A gel or chews at half-time covers the fuel side, so you can dose salt and carbs separately instead of relying on a single mix to do both jobs.
Shop energy gels & chews
Not sure yet?
Three quick questions,
one recommendation
Answer three questions about how you train and play and we'll point you at a brand to start with. Prefer the full version? Take the complete quiz.
How salty do you sweat?
How often do you train or play each week?
How do you like to take it?
Based on your answers, start with
Sodii
a full 1000 mg sodium serve made with Australian salt, in single sachets that are easy to take to the ground
Shop soccer electrolytesFree shipping over $149
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Soccer and electrolytes, answeredAnswers to what soccer players and parents ask us most. These same answers power the FAQ schema on this page.
Studies of professional players have measured sweat sodium around 980–1,130 mg per litre, with 1.7 to 3.1 litres of sweat lost over 90 minutes depending on conditions. That works out to roughly 1,900 mg on a cool day and close to 4,000 mg in the heat. Community players usually sit lower, so use the calculator above as a starting point.
Most players take one serve in the hour before kick-off and another at half-time, with water in between. On a hot day or after a double training session, a further serve after the game helps put back what you lost.
Often, yes. Elite players training at 5°C still lost about 1.7 litres of sweat in 90 minutes, carrying around 4 g of salt with it. Cool weather lowers sweat rate but doesn't switch it off.
Both are zero sugar. Redmond Re-Lyte carries 810 mg sodium (flavoured) to 1000 mg (Unflavoured) per 5g serve, made with real salt from an ancient seabed, and its tub is the best value per serve for players training several nights a week. Sodii carries 1000 mg sodium per serve, made in Australia with Australian salt, in single sachets that are easy to take to the ground. Plenty of players keep a tub at home and sachets in the kit bag.
Re-Lyte, Sodii and LMNT are formulated with adult sodium doses of 810–1000 mg per serve. For junior players, check the product label and talk to a GP or sports dietitian before using them.
We dispatch from Wollongong within 12 to 48 hours, and free metro shipping applies on orders over $149. Unopened, unused items in original packaging can be returned within 30 days.
Not sure which brand suits you?
Take our quiz and we will match you to a brand and format based on how you ride, or start with a taster pack and try a few before committing to a full size.