What are snus nicotine pouches, the ‘controversial’ item found in Olise’s locker?
This item was found among his belongings during the France squad’s World Cup camp. It does not contain tobacco, but it does contain nicotine.
Michael Olise, the French international and Bayern Munich winger, has been at the centre of football headlines for several weeks. His impressive season in Germany has attracted interest, most notably from Real Madrid, although the Spanish club has publicly denied making any contact. In recent hours, however, attention has shifted to an item spotted in his locker during France’s World Cup camp: a box of nicotine pouches.
These pouches are used orally by placing them between the gum and lip, allowing nicotine, typically synthetic, to be absorbed through the oral mucosa. Unlike Swedish snus, they do not contain tobacco and are therefore classified as a “white” nicotine product. They also contain excipients such as cellulose, salts, sweeteners and flavourings. Each pouch typically contains between 5 and 20 milligrams of nicotine and delivers its effects for between 20 and 60 minutes. Although they contain neither tobacco nor involve combustion, they remain potentially addictive.
According to a report by Germany’s Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, cited by Spain’s Ministry of Health, nicotine pouches are “oral administration pouches that contain nicotine salts together with other substances, including microcrystalline cellulose, sodium carbonate and other carbonate salts, citric acid and various flavourings”. The brand used by Olise is available in several strengths and flavours, including mint, watermelon and strawberry.
That said, the absence of tobacco does not make these products risk-free, as nicotine remains the primary toxic substance. “When nicotine is extracted from tobacco leaves, tobacco-specific nitrosamines may also be present, compounds that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recognises as carcinogenic,” the report states. Nicotine pouches may also contain contaminants such as formaldehyde, acrolein, benzene and toxic metals including cadmium, lead and arsenic.
Despite containing nicotine, many experts defend these products as a lower-risk alternative to traditional cigarettes. Dr Delon Human, leader of Smoke Free Sweden and former secretary-general of the World Medical Association, argues that “vapes, heated tobacco and nicotine pouches are helping to reduce risk, and Sweden’s transition to a smoke-free country proves it. What kills is not the nicotine, it’s combustion.”
Nevertheless, nicotine consumption can have health consequences. According to the report, using a 6 mg pouch has been shown to increase heart rate by an average of 10 beats per minute. Scientific studies have also linked nicotine use to increased insulin resistance and, consequently, a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Symptoms of mild nicotine poisoning include dizziness, nausea and vomiting. More significant exposure can cause diarrhoea, excessive salivation and a slowed heart rate, while severe poisoning may lead to seizures and respiratory depression.
The growing popularity of nicotine pouches is also evident in professional football. A study conducted by Loughborough University found that one in five professional players reported using nicotine pouches, snus or both.
The research surveyed 628 male players from the Premier League and the English Football League, as well as 51 players from the Women’s Super League. “This research will help ensure that the PFA’s own support services, and the medical teams at clubs, are based on football-specific evidence and tailored to players’ needs,” said Michael Bennett, head of player wellbeing at the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA).
Sweden has achieved what once seemed unattainable: reducing smoking to historically low levels and officially becoming the world’s first “smoke-free” country. According to the latest official figures, only 3.7% of Swedish adults smoke daily.
In the 1960s, nearly half of Swedish men smoked every day. Today, after decades of harm-reduction policies, Sweden has the lowest smoking rate in the European Union. Data from the Swedish Council for Information on Alcohol and Other Drugs (CAN) indicate that this decline has been driven by two key factors: legal access to non-combustible alternatives and a differentiated tax system that penalises cigarettes while favouring lower-risk products.
Scientific studies and official analyses estimate that Sweden has avoided approximately 3,000 smoking-related deaths annually thanks to the shift from cigarettes to alternatives such as snus and nicotine pouches. The country also records the lowest lung cancer rates in the EU, while smoking-related mortality is estimated to be between 20% and 40% lower than the European average.
In Spain, meanwhile, nicotine pouches remain fully legal. Because they do not contain tobacco, they are not fully incorporated into existing tobacco legislation and are not directly covered by Royal Decree 579/2017 of 9 June, which regulates aspects related to the manufacture, presentation and marketing of tobacco products and related products.
At present, there is no mandatory national limit on nicotine content, nor is there a specific tax regime or comprehensive regulatory framework governing these products. However, this is something the Spanish Government intends to change. One of the measures included in the Comprehensive Plan for the Prevention and Control of Tobacco Use 2024-2027 aims to adapt existing legislation to cover new nicotine products.
Under the proposal, nicotine content would be capped at 0.99 mg per pouch, effectively banning or requiring the reformulation of current products containing between 5 and 20 mg. The plan also seeks to prohibit flavourings that may increase consumer appeal and introduce new requirements relating to labelling, safety standards and packaging.
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