How Leeds United Adopted CONKA's Data Analytics Tools

The call connected. That was the first surprise.

Cold-calling the head doctor at a Premier League club is not, to put it mildly, a standard route into professional football. Most people advise you to go through agents, performance directors, warm introductions. So when Rishi Dhand, Leeds United's head doctor, actually picked up the phone, I had about thirty seconds to make it count.

By the end of that call, we had agreed to bring our science team up to Thorp Arch. Professor Paul Chazot and Dr Shanker came with me. We presented everything CONKA had built to that point: the safety and tolerance trial, the animal model data showing efficacy, the early cognitive testing. The room was a stroke of luck. All the performance professionals were sitting together, which meant every stakeholder who needed to sign off on an adoption was in the same place at the same time. That almost never happens.

The One Person Who Wasn't There

There was a catch. The person whose opinion would matter most was not in the room.

Elise McVicar, Leeds United's nutritionist, holds an undergraduate degree from Loughborough University, a master's in science from the University of Utah, and has spent time as an assistant sports dietitian at Stanford University. She was, at the moment of our presentation, filling pill pots. Individually. By hand.

That image is not a criticism. It is actually the clearest possible illustration of something we think about constantly at CONKA: some of the most qualified performance professionals in sport spend a material chunk of their working week chasing athletes around, asking them to take supplements. The CONKA dispenser is designed to solve that, but that is a story for another time.

Elise came around to CONKA in her own time, on her own terms. Which, when you think about it, is exactly how it should be. With the help of Dr. James Morehen, the head of nutrition at England Rugby, who could vouch firsthand from the use of CONKA both at England Rugby and also at Bristol Bears.

What the Trial Actually Showed

Leeds United ran a one-month trial. Every athlete measured their baseline cognition before starting CONKA, using the CONKA in-app test, and further measurements were taken whilst they were on it.

Every single athlete improved. The average uplift across the club was 10.4%. Cognition scores were also more consistent across the squad when using CONKA, which from a performance standpoint matters as much as the average improvement. A player who turns in an 8 every day is more valuable than one who alternates between 10 and 5.

Speed of processing variability, or SPV, was lower for every player whilst on CONKA. Lower variability means more reliable cognitive output, match after match.

The individual data, anonymised here, showed a range of improvements across the squad. One player improved by 22.0%, the highest individual uplift recorded in the trial. Three players showed improvements in the double digits. The lowest improvement was 2.2%. No one went backwards.

Why Cognitive Consistency Matters in Football

Decision-making speed is not separate from physical performance. It is upstream of it. A midfielder reading a press, a goalkeeper choosing whether to come, a striker timing a run: all of those are cognitive acts that happen in under a second, under fatigue, in front of 40,000 people.

Ashwagandha, one of the active ingredients in CONKA Flow, has been shown in a double-blind trial to produce significant improvements in endurance performance and muscle girth, with no adverse events reported.[1] Ashwagandha has been studied extensively for its effects on both physical endurance and cognitive performance -- see the full research summary on Examine.com. In a separate study, acute supplementation improved executive function, sustained attention, and short-term working memory.[2]

Alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine (Alpha GPC), a key ingredient in CONKA Clear, has been shown in a randomised controlled trial to significantly improve cognitive performance in tasks requiring attention and processing speed, with high-dose groups outperforming placebo on Stroop total score (13.0 vs. 5.2, p=0.013).[3] Alpha GPC has been studied extensively for its effects on attention and cognitive processing -- see the full research summary on Examine.com. Attention and processing speed are precisely the metrics that determine whether a player wins a one-on-one.

The formulations are built on six years of research, including clinical trials conducted in partnership with Durham University and Cambridge University. CONKA holds UK patent GB2620279 on its formulation, and every batch is Informed Sport certified, making it safe for use by professional athletes at the highest level.

What the Leeds United Data Means for Brain Health Supplement Development

The Leeds United trial sits within a wider body of data. Across 1000+ cognitive tests conducted by CONKA, the formulation has shown an 18.1% performance advantage over caffeine alone. Leeds United is one of 50-plus elite sports clubs now using CONKA, including NFL teams and Premier League clubs.

For anyone searching for the best brain supplements UK sport science has actually stress-tested, the difference between a product with a label and a product with a dataset is not subtle. It is the difference between marketing and evidence.

CONKA Flow and CONKA Clear are not positioned as nootropics UK consumers pick up on impulse. They are daily tools. Flow first, before the screen goes on. Clear before whatever counts. The Leeds United players did not take them as a pick-me-up after a poor session. They took them in advance of effort, consistently, over a month, and the results compounded.

That is what a brain health supplement is supposed to do.

The Bit That Stays With Me

Rishi picked up the phone. Elise was filling pill pots. The whole performance team happened to be in one room.

None of that was planned. The best partnerships rarely are. What we controlled was the science being strong enough that, once we were in the room, the data did the talking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What brain supplements do Premier League footballers use?

A: CONKA is used by Leeds United FC and more than 50 elite sports clubs globally, including Premier League and NFL teams. The formulation is Informed Sport certified, meaning it is batch-tested and safe for professional athletes. A one-month Leeds United trial showed a 10.4% average improvement in player cognition across the squad.

Q: What are the best brain supplements uk sport scientists actually recommend?

A: The most credible brain health supplements in the UK are those with clinical trial data, independent certification, and a named formulation. CONKA holds UK patent GB2620279, is Informed Sport certified, and has conducted clinical trials with Durham University and Cambridge University. Its ingredients include Ashwagandha, Alpha GPC, Rhodiola Rosea, and Ginkgo Biloba.

Q: Do nootropics actually improve athletic performance?

A: The evidence is stronger than most people assume. Ashwagandha has shown statistically significant improvements in endurance, bench press, and leg press in double-blind trials. Alpha GPC has improved attention and processing speed versus placebo in randomised controlled trials. The mechanism matters: these are not stimulants, they support the cognitive functions that underpin physical decisions.

Q: How long does it take to see results from a brain health supplement?

A: The Leeds United trial ran for one month, with baseline and in-trial cognitive measurements taken using the CONKA app. Every athlete improved within that timeframe. The average improvement was 10.4%. Consistency of use across the month appeared to contribute to more stable cognitive scores, not just higher averages.

Q: What is the difference between CONKA Flow and CONKA Clear?

A: CONKA Flow is the morning shot, taken before you open your screen or inbox. It contains Lemon Balm, Turmeric, Rhodiola Rosea, and Ashwagandha. CONKA Clear is the afternoon shot, taken in the five minutes before anything that counts. It contains Alpha GPC, Ginkgo Biloba, ALCAR, Glutathione, NAC, Alpha Lipoic Acid, Vitamin C, and Vitamin B12.

References

1. Verma et al. "Effects of Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) standardized root extract on physical endurance and VO2max in healthy adults performing resistance training: An eight-week, prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study." F1000Research. 2024. (source)
2. Xing et al. "Effects of Acute Ashwagandha Ingestion on Cognitive Function." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022. (source)
3. Kerksick. "Acute Alpha-Glycerylphosphorylcholine Supplementation Enhances Cognitive Performance in Healthy Men." Nutrients. 2024. (source)