The long-running debate over sex and sporting performance is back in the spotlight after audio surfaced of New York Knicks boss James Dolan telling players to avoid it for 10 weeks during their playoff push.
The remark came from an April address and later featured on Knicks stars Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart’s podcast The Roommates Show, after the team secured its first NBA Finals appearance in 53 years.
“The Spartans, they denied themselves, right, so they can have an edge. Get the edge. Go home, talk to your wives… don’t tell them it was my idea,”
Roommates EXCLUSIVE❗
NEVER BEFORE SEEN speech from Jim Dolan before the Knicks playoff run 🏆 pic.twitter.com/oZYBGinxYo
— Roommates Show (@Roommates__Show) June 15, 2026
Dolan is far from the first figure in elite sport to lean on that idea. For years, athletes heading into major tournaments have been told to stay away from sex on the belief that it can sap energy, increase fatigue, weaken muscles, and lower testosterone. That theory has stuck around partly because testosterone is linked to muscle development and lower body fat, both of which can influence athletic performance.
At the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which is being staged across Canada, Mexico and the United States, the focus from football’s governing body has been on player welfare, recovery and travel rather than on any tournament-wide “no sex” policy. FIFA has said players will get three-minute hydration breaks in every match, and that 103 of the 104 games will give teams three full days of rest. Any rules about partners or private lives are generally left to individual national teams and coaches rather than FIFA itself.
Football has seen plenty of similar examples. During the 2010 World Cup, England manager Fabio Capello reportedly restricted time with players’ wives and girlfriends. England then crashed out before the quarter-finals after a 4-1 defeat to Germany, which does not exactly make a glowing case for the tactic. Four years later, Bosnia-Herzegovina coach Safet Sušić put it even more bluntly.
“There will be no sex in Brazil.”
With coaches at the 2026 World Cup largely keeping quiet about what happens off the pitch, the obvious question remains: does abstinence actually give athletes an edge? The short answer is no.
Sex and relationship expert Dr Tara Suwinyattichaiporn, from the UK dating show Celebs Go, says the science does not support the idea.
“Giving up sex or masturbation isn’t necessary for maximum performance for athletes.”
That view is broadly supported by recent sports science. A 2026 scoping review found no observed performance impairment when sexual activity took place at least 10 to 12 hours before testing, while shorter gaps of under two hours were more likely to affect recovery. The review also stressed that the evidence base remains limited, with small studies and a heavy male bias, so the issue is better understood as a recovery-and-timing question than a hard rule about abstinence.
There is also little support for the claim that sex meaningfully drains testosterone. While the hormone plays a major role in sperm production, bone and muscle mass, fat storage, red blood cell production, and mood, Dr Tara says any shift tied to sex is brief.
“Having sex does not deplete testosterone. Testosterone can fluctuate during sex and orgasm but the changes are very temporary.”
The belief itself is much older than modern football or basketball. Ancient Greek and Roman cultures held that male athletes needed to conserve semen to protect what they saw as masculine power and aggression in competition.
Certified multi-award-winning sex and relationship coach Gemma Nice also agrees that sex is not automatically a problem for athletes, although she says timing can matter.
“Sex before matches doesn’t necessarily reduce stamina, physical strength or aerobic activity. Although the coaches would always advise against this until after the athletes have competed, because it takes the body a while to recover energetically from a sexual experience.
“They would also advise no sex 30 minutes to two hours up to the game because the athletes may feel light headed, or slightly fatigued due to the physical demands of penetrative sex.”
Even so, plenty of competitors, particularly in boxing, still choose to abstain during training camp. In practice, it often comes down to personal preference, habit, and mindset more than hard evidence.
Dr Tara believes coaches may be more concerned about everything surrounding sex than the act itself.
“My theory is that the coaches don’t want the other distractions surrounding sex and dating to affect the players such as dating drama, drinking, partying, and all in all not focusing on the game.”
She also notes that athletes in stable, supportive relationships are unlikely to be harmed by intimacy before a major event. In some cases, it may even be beneficial.
“Scientifically it should help them feel happier and more energized due to oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin release during a connected sexual encounter,”
For players dealing with nerves before a high-pressure match, that effect could actually be useful.
She explains: “Sex is actually great to relieve stress and keep anxiety levels down… It keeps you in the parasympathetic nervous system because it releases the feel good hormones dopamine, serotonin and testosterone, meaning you feel good and the cortisol levels (stress hormones) are kept low.”
The bottom line is that blanket no-sex rules are mostly a legacy of superstition, not science. The real performance risks before a big match are more likely to come from poor sleep, alcohol, late nights, travel, and distraction than from consensual sex itself. For most athletes, the smarter question is not whether sex is allowed, but whether it is timed in a way that protects rest, recovery and focus.