The study aimed to compare  the level of nutrition knowledge among athletes and non-athletes of university male students. This study involved male university students from Menoufia, Sadat, and Zagazig Universities in Egypt. A total of 84 students participated: 28 athletes from the sports sciences and 56 non-athletes from other faculties. Male students in their third or fourth year, aged 20 to 23 years, and agreed to participate were enrolled in the study. In contrast, subjects who were female, engaged in nutrition classes for non-athletes, had disabilities or mental health issues and had chronic illnesses were excluded. This descriptive study assessed sports nutrition knowledge using the Nutrition for Sport Knowledge Questionnaire (NSKQ). Participants' body height (cm), body weight (kg), and BMI (kg/m²) were measured. The collected data were statistically analyzed and presented in terms of frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation (±SD). All participants were 20–23-year-old men, 71.4% of athletes and 82.1% of non-athletes from rural areas. Non-athletes were 14.2% obese, whereas athletes were not. At least 50% of weight management knowledge was known by 57.1% of athletes and 21.4% of non-athletes. Macronutrient domains were 64.3% wrong in both groups. 78.6% of athletes and 67.9% of non-athletes failed the micronutrient domain 50% requirement. In the sports nutrition domain, 92.9% of athletes and 89.3% of non-athletes fell below this standard. Supplementation knowledge was below 50% for 78.6% of athletes and 85.7% of non-athletes. Most groups scored below 50% on the NSKQ, including 85.7% of athletic and 92.9% of non-athletic students.