AT THE LIMIT PLAYER WORKLOAD IN ELITE PROFESSIONAL MEN’S FOOTBALL IT’S A CRAZY SCHEDULE AND IT IS GOING TO KILL OUR PLAYERS! WE CANNOT SUSTAIN THAT FOR A LONG TIME (...) THEY HAVE TO IF WE DON’T LEARN TO DEAL BREATHE AND REST TO PERFORM WITH OUR PLAYERS IN A BETTER BETTER IN TOURNAMENTS. WAY, COMPETITION-WISE... THEY HAVE TO REST!

WE WILL KILL THE BEAUTIFUL Pep Guardiola, Press Conference, GAME. WITHOUT THE PLAYER, Manchester City FC Pre-season Tour of Asia, 23/07/19 THE GAME IS NOT A GOOD ONE.

Jurgen Klopp, Press Conference, Liverpool FC v. Wolverhampton Wanderers, 10/05/19 ON THE LIMIT 03

ABOUT THE REPORT

WELCOME TO THE FIFPRO REPORT ON PLAYER WORKLOAD IN ELITE PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL. AT This report provides players’ perspectives of their workload from club and country duties. The report builds on previous FIFPRO medical reports and player surveys. Additional scientific findings concerning the exposure of THE LIMIT players to excessive workload and insufficient rest is also taken into account. Our industry’s evolution has been accelerating and PLAYER WORKLOAD IN so have competition reforms. As a consequence of these reforms the international match calendar has ELITE PROFESSIONAL become denser. The game is faster, more physical and more global than ever. Although the demands MEN’S FOOTBALL on players are increasing, their physical and psychological capacity has natural limits.

This puts not only their health and therefore career prospects at risk but threatens to diminish their CONTENTS peak sporting performance and as a result the quality of competitions. Our research focuses on football’s fast-changing competition landscape from an elite player’s perspective – those who compete 04 WELCOME at an international level for their club and national 07 TOP FINDINGS team - and formulates key policies and regulatory responses based on health and safety concerns. 08 RECOMMENDATIONS Our objective is to protect players and to safeguard 10 THE OVERLOAD OF ELITE PLAYERS sporting excellence. The report uses a number of player case studies to showcase how competition 12 THE EXPOSURE OF ELITE PLAYERS calendars and travel requirements clash with 14 PLAYER WORKLOAD IN PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL scientific best practice, leaving some elite players on the limit of their mental and physical capacity. 16 MEDICAL EVIDENCE & GUIDELINES 18 COMPETITION REFORMS & MATCH CALENDARS 21 STATISTICS AND DATA INFORM ON PLAYER WORKLOAD Factual, evidence-based and player-centred policy 36 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS development to safeguard the rights and interests of professionals at the heart of the game. ENGAGE Provide the industry, policy makers, influencers and media with trustworthy analyses and proposals about the workload of elite players in an evolving competition landscape for professional football players worldwide. EMPOWER ABOUT FIFPRO Players are central to the evolution of football FIFPRO – Football Players Worldwide – is the global and are needed to shape the international representative organisation for all professional match calendar and design of club and national football players; more than 65.000 football players competitions. in total, male and female. 04 AT THE LIMIT 05

PUTTING THERE ARE MORE AND PLAYER MORE COMPETITIONS AND HEALTH & GAMES, AND MORE PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE AND EMOTIONAL STRESS FIRST FOR PLAYERS. RUI PATRICIO | PORTUGAL PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL IS ONE OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT SECTORS OF THE GLOBAL SPORT & This report outlines the solutions to the ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY. problems it clearly identifies: 1 Develop strong standards to limit It is the players who make our game special, and manage player workload and and who captivate millions of people sporting performance, such as in around the world. The findings showcase transformation of competitions and the top few hundred players in the world are and off-season breaks, minimum rest periods between matches and mitigation how professional football must protect its subsequently increased the players’ workload. being drained by an overload of competitions, of long-distance travel. most important actors – the players – for the Today, the workload of professional elite thousands of their colleagues are offered sake of their health and the game itself. players looks nothing like it did 20 years ago. too few playing opportunities to shape a 2 Restructure the (international) lasting career. match calendar, before developing and Welcome to the 2019 report on player As new forces transform our societies, it has adding new fixtures that would further Professional football needs a more workload. There are a limited number of elite become clear that professional football will increase player workload. not remain isolated from these changes. sustainable approach. More structural athletes whose talents light up our sport. 3 changes to the way competitions are Respect minimum rest and call up periods Their careers are short, intense and fragile Technological improvements and emerging organised are on their way, but safeguards before and after matches and tournaments. thus creating a vital responsibility for all audiences, on a regional and global scale, to promote healthy, dynamic and fair 4 stakeholders to protect the short and long- create new revenue streams and ultimately Develop enforcement mechanisms to career development are still lacking. term health of players and to sustain their accelerate the transformation of the design guarantee the harmonised application of ability for elite sporting performance. and format of our competitions. Recent player health protection measures. reforms to national team and international PUTTING PLAYERS AND 5 Recognise the joint responsibility The report focuses on the experiences of club competition formats are testament to PERFORMANCE FIRST and interest of all international football several hundred players at the peak of our sport this evolution. But as rights holders protect Governing bodies, leagues, and clubs stakeholders in the protection of players – those representing their club domestically their competitions and strive to reach new must place more importance on the while designing competition formats and internationally, as well as playing for their audiences, they create challenges not just for protection of players’ health and sporting and match calendars. national team. It showcases how the structural the players’ workload but also risk inflicting performance during future competitions. changes in competition formats are impacting damage to sporting performance. Managing competition reforms requires a clear Current discussions on the future of the workload of professional players around commitment to our players’ health and welfare competitions need to prioritise a reform the world. It provides the player’s perspective - particularly between competition organisers THE PLAYERS MAKE of international and domestic match regarding developing sustainable solutions and player associations. OUR GAME WHAT IT IS calendars to stress the protection of and cites scientific evidence for appropriate Moreover, The current match calendar at the players’ health. First and foremost this The findings and recommendations laid regulatory solutions. top end of professional football increases the requires a mandatory framework to protect out in this report create a platform for open risks of damaging a sustainable and healthy players’ rest and recovery periods during consultation between all stakeholders to create THE IMPACT ON MATCH career path, impacting sporting excellence. and after the sporting season. It also practical and implementable safeguards for CALENDARS AND WORKLOAD At the same time, thousands of players requires further scrutiny of fundamental players’ health and performance. Competitions and their formats at national and hundreds of professional clubs do not sport and employment rules such as club and international level have drastically have adequate resources to compete in a size and squad selection. Increasing the changed since the inception of professional meaningful way in the international football number of fixtures must be accompanied football, heavily influenced by economic environment. The drive towards maximum by safeguards to manage the load for and financial interests. The privatisation and concentration of resources of the top end individual players. Most professional team commercialisation of television networks of the game thus undermines working and sports other than football have better Theo van Seggelen in the 1980s and 1990s accelerated the playing opportunities across football. While protections to manager player workload. FIFPro Secretary General

06 AT THE LIMIT 07

TOP FINDINGS

4 SEASON BREAKS AND DETRAINING PERIODS WHAT THE ARE CUT SHORT The cumulative effect of competitions and a packed match CURRENT PLAYER calendar not only cuts rest and recovery periods, but eats into vital season breaks and detraining WORKLOAD TELLS periods for elite players.

5 ELITE NON-EUROPEANS US ABOUT HEALTH, TRAVEL TOO MUCH, WITHOUT EXTRA REST PERFORMANCE & Due to the global nature of the game, players cross many time-zones for international matches and do not get COMPETITIONS the additional rest recommendend by medical experts.

6 CONTINUOUS 1 IN EXTREME CASES, PLAYERS PARTICIPATE COMPETITION CYCLES IN ALMOST 80 ENDANGER CAREERS GAMES PER YEAR Players start their careers at the top international level at an ever younger These players take part in more age and are exposed to continuous than double the amount of games than periods of match overload. Within a non-international first-division and World Cup cycle some players will second-division players. have no real off-season break.

2 MATCH OVERLOAD 7 COMPETING AFFECTS MANY INTERESTS HAVE LED TO WE NEED TO MANAGE THE ELITE PLAYERS A FRAGMENTED CALENDAR Many players at an elite level play Economic interests and multiple WORKLOAD FOR ALL PLAYERS more than 60 matches per season competition formats lead to a across multiple competitions. fragmented match landscape. VERY WELL, AND BALANCE THE When they do not reach such a high The non-alignment of competition number, it is mainly due to injury, early organisers, and the increasing elimination or non-qualification for appetite for elite football is creating NEEDS BETWEEN THE PLAYER, a competition. an environment which puts players health and performance at risk. CLUB AND COUNTRY. FOR US TO 3 MOST ELITE FOOTBALLERS PLAY 8 NO STAKEHOLDER CONTINUOUSLY PLAY AT OUR BEST WITH LESS THAN CAN IMPROVE 5 DAYS REST THE CALENDAR ALONE AND IMPROVE PERFORMANCE, There are ever-increasing The risk for players and competitions and matches for clubs competitions is serious. The and national teams. Consequently complexity requires a wholistic WE NEED TO BE PROTECTED FROM most matches are played with approach in which each football insufficient rest and recovery periods, stakeholder must contribute EXCESSIVE MATCH SCHEDULES. increasing the risk of injury and shorter to creating a better playing careers, for players. environment.

GIORGIO CHIELLINI | ITALY 08 AT THE LIMIT 09

RECOMMENDATIONS

3 CONSIDER MATCH CAPS WHAT THE A match cap could be introduced to help players avoid excesses and handle the pressure a packed FOOTBALL calendar puts on their body and mind. However, if the recommended rest and detraining periods are respected, INDUSTRY CAN a hard cap might not be necessary. 4 THE PLAYING DO TO PUT CALENDAR The amount of games played should be considered individually not per PLAYER HEALTH & squad. Increasing match numbers should mean spreading the games amongst more players, giving the PERFORMANCE chance for others to have playing time. Increasing squad sizes for this purpose could facilitate more flexible and FIRST innovative competition designs. 5 MORE REST FOR LONG-HAUL TRAVEL 1 LOCK IN A minimum rest period for long SEASON BREAKS distance travellers with their national All professional players need to rest and club teams should be introduced. physically and mentally during the In addition the number of cross summer and winter breaks to be in continental trips should be reduced. the best physical condition to play. 63% of national team players say that Minimal mandatory seasonal breaks long-distance travel impacts their (four weeks in the summer, two weeks performance. in the winter) should be locked into the calendar. 6 DEVELOP AN EARLY WARNING SYSTEM PUT A CAP ON HOW MUCH 2 LIMIT The match load of players should be BACK-TO-BACK monitoried by developing an early PLAYERS CAN BE USED, AND GAMES warning system. This system would help players, teams and competition Players need at least 5 days between organisers with forward planning. It YOU CAN PLAY AS MANY high-intensity games to perform would also help to track minimum at their best during a season and regulatory requirements for rest and to manage injury risk. While it is GAMES AS YOU WANT, recovery. unavoidable to schedule back-to- back matches, a limit on the amount BECAUSE THE PLAYERS of these played with less than five 7 NO ADDITIONAL days of rest should be introduced. GAMES BEFORE PLAYER SAFEGUARDS ARE IN PLACE WILL HAVE COMPULSORY There should be no additional matches

added to competition calendars at AMOUNTS OF REST. national and international levels before enforceable mechanisms VINCENT KOMPANY | BELGIUM to protect players have been implemented. 10 AT THE LIMIT

PLAYER CASE STUDY HEUNG-MIN THE OVERLOAD SON OF ELITE SOUTH KOREA, TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR PLAYERS GLOBAL ELITE PLAYERS ARE FACED WITH SEVERE MATCH OVERLOAD FROM 25 MAY 2018 WHICH THREATENS NOT ONLY THEIR TO 13 JUNE 2019 SPORTING PERFORMANCE BUT ALSO THEIR HEALTH AND SUSTAINABLE CAREER PATHS. THE FOLLOWING 78 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED EXAMPLES HIGHLIGHT THE TOTAL GAMES PLAYED, THE REST AND RECOVERY PERIODS THROUGHOUT GAMES PLAYED WITH THE SEASON, THE SEASON BREAKS 72 5 DAYS OF REST PROVIDED AND THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF KILOMETRES FLOWN BY LONG- CLUB GAMES DISTANCE TRAVELLERS. 53 NATIONAL TEAM GAMES 25 The South Korean forward played a total of 78 games for his club and country, more than anyone else in our sample. SEASON BREAKS The Tottenham Hotspur forward played in 0 the World Cup, the Asian Games and in the 0 22 Asian Cup this year, playing 25 games with DAYS DAYS his national team. 56 of these 78 games WINTER SUMMER were played with less than five days of rest, representing 72% of his games. In consequence, he had only 22 days of rest BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION in the summer, he played the Asian Games 25 IN NATIONAL TEAM in Indonesia in August. In the winter, he THE MEDICAL 12 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE did not have any detraining period. Son RECOMMENDATIONS Heung-Min is the biggest traveller of our 31 IN sample with 110,600km travelled. MINIMUM OF 5 DAYS 4 IN EFL CUP 1 IN FA CUP OF REST BETWEEN GAMES 5 FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES 14 DAYS OF REST IN WINTER FROM 28 TO 42 DAYS OF REST IN SUMMER 110,600KM FLOWN WITH NUMBER OF LONG FLIGHTS NATIONAL TEAM SHOULD BE MINIMISED 12 AT THE LIMIT 13 IVAN MARCUS PLAYER CASE STUDY RAKITIĆ THURAM THE EXPOSURE OF ELITE PLAYERS

Global elite players are exposed to a much higher work load than their peers who do not play international competitions for clubs and national teams. The following comparison between Ivan Rakitic and Marcus Thuram highlights the main differences in this respect. FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 30 JUNE 2019 FRANCE, EA GUINGAMP TO 13 JUNE 2019 CROATIA, BARCELONA In his best season yet, Marcus Thuram played a grand total of 42 games With 68 games played this season, Ivan Rakitić has one of the highest numbers in this season: 32 in , 3 in the French Cup, 3 in the and 4 with the our sample. The Croatian international reached the final of the World Cup and the French U21. semi-final of the Champions League with his club Barcelona. These numbers are considerably smaller than the rest of our sample as Thuram 72% (49) of his games were played with less than five days of rest, which may cause did not play any international club games. He played four junior national team deteriorations in the long run to his body. With 14 games with his national team, games. This shows the important differences between two “professional” worlds. including seven at the World Cup, Rakitić had a busy season, where he only had 21 days of rest in the summer and seven days in winter. Ivan Rakitic travelled 30,000km with the Croatian national team.

68 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 42 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 54 CLUB GAMES 38 NATIONAL NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 14 GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 4 72 5 DAYS OF REST 40 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 7 0 21 9 0 44 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION

14 IN NATIONAL TEAM 4 IN NATIONAL TEAM 12 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 32 IN LIGUE 1 34 IN LALIGA 30,000KM 3 IN FRENCH CUP KM 7 IN COPA DEL REY FLOWN WITH 3 IN LEAGUE CLUB 2,000 1 IN SUPERCOPA NATIONAL TEAM FLOWN WITH NATIONAL TEAM 14 AT THE LIMIT 02

PLAYER WORKLOAD IN PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL THE EVIDENCE OF PLAYER WORKLOAD IN ELITE FOOTBALL 16 AT THE LIMIT 17

MEDICAL EVIDENCE AND GUIDELINES This is especially true THERE IS NOW A SUBSTANTIAL in the following circumstances: 1 A period of recovery of five days or AMOUNT OF MEDICAL EVIDENCE more leads to better performances, I WAS WASTED AFTER 5 YEARS. I DID SHOWING A NEED TO DECREASE more matches won and a lesser chance THE NUMBER OF GAMES THAT of injury for players. NOT HAVE ENOUGH REST. BETWEEN 2 A very short period of recovery between INDIVIDUAL PLAYERS ARE PLAYING matches – less than 72 hours – for players is EACH SEASON. THE KEY ARGUMENTS associated with more matches lost for their THE SCHEDULE OF MY CLUB AND ARE LINKED TO THE SUSTAINABLE teams; 3 A short period of recovery between NATIONAL TEAM, I SIMPLY HAD NO CAREER PATHS OF PLAYERS, INJURY matches – 96 hours or less – is associated RISKS AND THE QUALITY OF SPORTING with a higher risk of injury in comparison to WAY OF TAKING A BREAK. PERFORMANCE. THIS IS KEY IN a longer period of up to five days; 4 Playing two matches per week, with a 72 | JAPAN ENSURING THAT PLAYERS, CLUBS, to 96 hour recovery time in between, leads AND FANS GET THE MOST OUT OF to a higher risk of injury in comparison to EVERY SINGLE GAME. playing a single match per week. BETWEEN LONG-HAUL FLIGHTS both physically and mentally. However, these PERCEPTION OF ELITE should also never be too long as they may affect PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALLERS Professional footballers can only Additional recovery should be given to player performance and physiological capacities reach their full potential when they professional footballers after long flights (over (e.g. endurance or strength). six hours) in order to maintain their health and are in good health, both physically and The absence of such breaks has been shown to INSUFFICIENT RECOVERY BETWEEN MATCHES optimum performance, especially for those mentally. Overloading the international affect not only performance but also increase exposed to jet-lag (disruption of body clock and match calendar has a substantial the likelihood of players’ injuries. The absence of daily rhythm) as a consequence of crossing three negative impact on players’ well-being a winter break, for example, has been associated or more time zones. Considering that the rule of NEGATIVE IMPACT OF LONG-DISTANCE FLIGHTS and ultimately on their sporting with a higher injury rate in the following period. thumb of one additional recovery day for each performance. Player performance is also negatively affected. time-zone crossed cannot be applied within the current congested match calendar, FIFPRO Ideally, medical evidence states that a minimum PLAYING TOO MANY MATCHES PER SEASON REST PERIODS recommends that (i) the number of long flights of four to six weeks of complete rest should be Medical evidence provides a range of (especially those inducing jet-lag) is minimised observed in the off-season, and two weeks in scientific findings that together build a and (ii) minimal travel standards during long the mid-season. clear framework on how to best address flights, e.g. travelling in business class, should NEGATIVE IMPACT OF NUMBER OF MATCHES be established. Studies have shown that there is and mitigate player overloading. WHAT DO THE PLAYERS THINK? an increased risk of Venous Thromboembolism (VET) or Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) also known In 2018, 543 players completed the FIFPRO BETWEEN MATCHES commonly as the “economy class syndrome” survey on the International Match Calendar. 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 for high-performance athletes travelling long Of those 543 players, 55% played in their Football matches involve frequent, Totally Disagree Agree Totally fractionated explosive sprints with a distance by air, in cramped conditions. national teams: disagree agree strenuous use of muscles that can induce 1 60% of surveyed players reported that damage and produce post-match fatigue IN- AND OFF- SEASON BREAKS long national and international flights had a Among players who play between 50 and 60 that lasts up to 72 hours. Therefore, having In- and off-season breaks increase players’ negative impact on their recovery. a congested period with a large number of matches, 50% think that they play too much. ability to recover fully during and after a football While 50 to 60 games could be considered matches has been correlated with poorer season. The latter is essential before starting a 2 85% were in favour of an in-season break perfomances and a higher risk of injuries. acceptable, one logically concludes that new season. At the time of writing, there are no lasting 14 days. playing almost 80 games, as some of our official international guidelines available for the sample players do, is far too high to be optimal duration of in- and off-season breaks 3 64% of the players believed they had sustainable. but their positive impact has been widely insufficient rest between matches. confirmed. These periods of detraining (partial or complete cessation of football activities) need to be long enough to recover and regenerate 18 AT THE LIMIT 19

COMPETITIONS REFORMS PLAYERS HAVE A FUNDAMENTAL The current transformations need to be have been replaced with competitive games, openly debated in a transparent process extra rounds have been added to existing INTEREST IN THE SPORTING, involving all stakeholders. The future of championships, and football has become ECONOMIC AND STRUCTURAL football competitions and their impact on faster and more physically intensive. & MATCH players’ careers must be carefully assessed. DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR GAME. Every competition organiser – FIFA, regional Still, competition organisers at all levels confederations, national associations, leagues are looking to add new reforms to existing CALENDARS or private operators – rely on the same competition formats – increasing games and giving players larger workloads without As competitions evolve, players workforce to drive their competitions: the players. They create the social, sporting proper safeguards in place. The possible UEFA want to discuss and influence the Champions League reform, the Club World and economic value. developments relating to the future Cup discussions, domestic league and cup shape of their working environment. reforms and the growth of the International Given the ever-widening economic, THE IMPACT OF COMPETITIONS Champions Cup all have the potential to alter financial and sporting inequality in Both at club and international level, the the competitive nature of the game and affect world football, competition design number of competitions has increased players’ well-being. and reforms must be discussed across over the last 25 years. all levels of the industry to support a healthy environment for all clubs New competitions have appeared, and old and players. ones have been modified. Friendly games 2019 2021 MATCH MATCH CALENDAR 2020

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This calendar does not include qualifiers for continental competitions (Club & National Team) and for the World Cup 20 AT THE LIMIT 21 STATISTICS & DATA ON PLAYER WORKLOAD

DATA METHODOLOGY* The purpose of this report is to highlight individual player workload at the elite level. The selected players were chosen based on the following criteria: First, players had to represent club and country at international level. Second, the player sample had to collectively represent all continents. Third, they had to play in one of the Top 5 European Leagues, with the exception of Lasse Schöne who was selected because of Denmark’s and Ajax’s long run into international competitions over the last 12 months. All matches were counted in the period between the FIFA World Cup 2018 and the end of the season 2018/2019 including national team competitions. I AM SURE THAT IF YOU, AS A PLAYER, WANT TO GIVE YOUR BEST 100% OF THE TIME, WITH ALL THE EXPECTATIONS THAT OTHERS HAVE OF YOU, YOU NEED A BREAK. A BREAK TO BE ABLE TO RECOVER EASILY, TO HAVE FULL STRENGTH FOR WHAT COMES NEXT.

KEVIN TRAPP | GERMANY

*The data was gathered on www.transfermarkt.de 22 AT THE LIMIT 23

PIERRE-EMERICK ALISSON AUBAMEYANG BECKER

FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 13 JUNE 2019 GABON, ARSENAL FC TO 10 JULY 2019 BRAZIL, LIVERPOOL FC Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang played a full season with Arsenal, playing The Brazilian goalkeeper played 72 matches with Liverpool, and played 59 games to reach the final of the Europa League, 59% of which were every game in both the Champions league and the Premier League. played with less than five days of rest (35). Most of his games with the national team were played in the first six Because of his non-participation in the World Cup with Gabon, Pierre- months of the season. 70% of his games were played without the Emerick Aubameyang was allowed a long resting period of 50 days recommended five days of rest. He travelled 80,000 kilometres with his in the summer of 2018. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang travelled 36,200 national team. He benefitted from 23 days of rest this summer following kilometres with the Gabonese national team. Brazil’s early exit in the World Cup.

59 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 72 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 56 CLUB GAMES 53 NATIONAL NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 3 GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 19 59 5 DAYS OF REST 70 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 0 0 50 0 0 23 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 3 IN NATIONAL TEAM 19 IN NATIONAL TEAM 12 IN EUROPA LEAGUE 13 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 1 IN FA CUP 36,200KM 38 IN PREMIER LEAGUE 80, 000KM 36 IN PREMIER LEAGUE FLOWN WITH 2 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES FLOWN WITH 2 IN LEAGUE CUP NATIONAL TEAM NATIONAL TEAM 5 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES 24 AT THE LIMIT 25

RADAMEL DIEGO FALCAO GODÍN

FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 10 JULY 2019 COLOMBIA, AS MONACO TO 10 JULY 2019 URUGUAY, ATLÉTICO DE MADRID The Colombian striker played a comparatively low total of 57 games The Uruguayan defender Diego Godín got injured five times, missing with AS Monaco, mainly because of ASM’s early elimination in the 14 games this season with a total of 56 matches played. French cup competition and the Champions League. He travelled over 110,000 kilometres for 16 national team matches. Most of his games were still played with less than five days of rest 58% percent of his games were played without five days of rest. (50%) with a total of 100,000 kilometres travelled with his national He benefitted from 30 days of rest last summer, thus within the team over the year. recommended minimum period.

57 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 56 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 40 CLUB GAMES 40 NATIONAL NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 17 GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 16 50 5 DAYS OF REST 58 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 9 0 23 7 0 30 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 17 IN NATIONAL TEAM 16 IN NATIONAL TEAM 5 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 6 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 33 IN LIGUE 1 100,000KM 30 IN 110,000KM 1 IN COUPE DE FRANCE FLOWN WITH 1 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES FLOWN WITH 1 IN TROPHÉE DES CHAMPIONS NATIONAL TEAM 1 IN UEFA SUPER CUP NATIONAL TEAM 2 IN COPA DEL REY 26 AT THE LIMIT 27

EDEN HARRY HAZARD KANE

FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 13 JUNE 2019 BELGIUM, CHELSEA FC TO 13 JUNE 2019 ENGLAND, TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FC Hazard played 73 games due to Belgium’s run in the FIFA World Cup Harry Kane missed two months of competition due to injury, missing and in the UEFA Europa League. The Belgian played 66% of his games games in September, October, January, April and May. with less than five days of rest, suffering from the absence of a winter break in the UK and a long summer due to the World Cup. He still totalled 57 games, including 38 without five days of rest (67%). Following a good run at the World Cup, the Tottenham striker rested for Hazard only had a 21 day break last summer, far from the ideal minimum only 22 days over the summer, and no days in winter. Harry Kane travelled rest period. He played 19 games with the national team, more than any 28,550 kilometres with the English national team. other player in our sample. Hazard travelled 27,600 kilometres with the Belgian national team.

73 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 57 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 54 CLUB GAMES 41 NATIONAL NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 19 GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 16 66 5 DAYS OF REST 67 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 0 0 21 0 0 22 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 19 IN NATIONAL TEAM 16 IN NATIONAL TEAM 8 IN EUROPA LEAGUE 10 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 37 IN PREMIER LEAGUE 27,600KM 28 IN PREMIER LEAGUE 28, 550KM 3 IN FA CUP FLOWN WITH 1 IN FA CUP FLOWN WITH 5 IN EFL CUP NATIONAL TEAM 2 IN LEAGUE CUP NATIONAL TEAM 1 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES 28 AT THE LIMIT 29

FRANCK SADIO KESSIE MANÉ

FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 11 JULY 2019 IVORY COAST, AC MILAN TO 19 JULY 2019 SENEGAL, LIVERPOOL FC In his second season with AC Milan, Franck Kessie played 58 games, The Senegalese forward played a total of 70 games, including 16 with including five games with the Ivory Coast. Senegal (three at the World Cup). He played his last European game in early December, and he is one of the A majority of these (68%) were played with less than five days of rest. As few players in our sample with a majority of games played with at least five with all players in England, Mané did not enjoy any break over winter and days of rest this season (45% with less than five days of rest). As he did only had 22 days of rest after the World Cup before joining Liverpool for not play in the World Cup, he benefited from a proper detraining period in their pre-season summer tour. Sadio Mané travelled 100,000 kilometres summer. However, his winter break consisted of only eight days, which is with the Senegalese national team. less than the minimum recommended. Franck Kessie travelled 60,000 kilometres with the Ivory Coast national team.

58 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 70 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 48 CLUB GAMES 54 NATIONAL NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 10 GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 16 45 5 DAYS OF REST 68 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 8 0 50 0 0 22 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 10 IN NATIONAL TEAM 16 IN NATIONAL TEAM 3 IN EUROPA LEAGUE 13 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 35 IN 60,000KM 1 IN EFL CUP 100,000KM 4 IN COPPA ITALIA FLOWN WITH 36 IN PREMIER LEAGUE FLOWN WITH 1 IN SUPERCOPPA ITALIANA NATIONAL TEAM 4 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES NATIONAL TEAM 5 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES 30 AT THE LIMIT 31

CHRISTIAN HIROKI PULISIC SAKAI

FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 8 JULY 2019 USA, TO 13 JUNE 2019 JAPAN, The American forward had a difficult season at Dortmund. Five injuries Despite participating in the Asian Cup with Japan and playing 15 have led him to miss 14 games this season with a total of 49 games played. games with his national team, played only 36% of his 49 games with less than five days of rest. 55% of the games he played were without five days of rest. He is on of the few players to have benefited from a full period of rest - 38 days - over the Olympique Marseille’s early exit from the Europa League and the summer. During the winter, he had 14 days of rest, the minimum required national cup allowed him to have at least 5 days of rest between amount. In spite of his injuries and not participating at the World Cup, games throughout the remainder of the season. In spite of Japan’s early Christian Pulisic still travelled 45,000 kilometres over the year with his exit from the World Cup, he only enjoyed 22 days of rest. Hiroki Sakai national team. travelled 77,100 kilometres with the Japanese national team.

49 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 49 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 38 CLUB GAMES 34 NATIONAL NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 11 GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 15 55 5 DAYS OF REST 36 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 14 0 38 2 0 22 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 11 IN NATIONAL TEAM 15 IN NATIONAL TEAM 7 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 27 IN LIGUE 1 20 IN 45,000KM 4 IN EUROPA LEAGUE 77,100KM 8 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES FLOWN WITH 1 IN FLOWN WITH 3 IN DFB POKAL NATIONAL TEAM 2 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES NATIONAL TEAM 32 AT THE LIMIT 33

MOHAMED LASSE SALAH SCHÖNE

FROM 25 MAY 2018 FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 6 JULY 2019 EGYPT, LIVERPOOL FC TO 13 JUNE 2019 DENMARK, AFC AJAX With 66 games this season and a very long run in the UEFA Champions With 62 games, including 10 with his national team, Lasse Schöne had League, Mo Salah had a busy season. 68% of his games were played a busy calendar year. with less than five days of rest, the second highest rate in our sample. Participating in the World Cup, advancing through the group stage and Salah did not have the recommended time to recuperate in a vast reaching the semi-final of the Champions League with Ajax did not give majority of cases. He only played ten games with his national team, the Danish international a lot of rest time. He was only allowed 10 days World Cup included, which allowed him to rest during the international of seasonal break over the summer and 12 days over winter, far from the breaks. Mohamed Salah travelled 50,000 kilometres with the Egyptian recommended minimum. Out of these 62 games, 60% were played with national team. less than 5 days of rest. Lasse Schöne travelled 26,000 kilometres with the Danish national team.

66 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED 62 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 56 CLUB GAMES 52 NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 10 60 5 DAYS OF REST TEAM GAMES 10 68 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS SEASON BREAKS 0 0 39 12 0 10 DAYS DAYS DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 10 IN NATIONAL TEAM 10 IN NATIONAL TEAM 12 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 15 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 1 IN FA CUP 50,000KM 32 IN 26,000KM 1 IN ENGLISH LEAGUE CUP FLOWN WITH 4 IN TOTO CUP FLOWN WITH 38 IN PREMIER LEAGUE NATIONAL TEAM 1 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES NATIONAL TEAM 4 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES 34 AT THE LIMIT 35

RAPHAEL VARANE

FROM 25 MAY 2018 TO 13 JUNE 2019 FRANCE, REAL MADRID CF World Champion and 4 time UEFA Champions League winner, Raphael Varane, played 62 games this season, including 18 with his national team, France. 58% of his games (36) were played with less than five days of rest. He was allowed 23 days of rest this summer and nine days in winter. Due to Real Madrid’s early knock-out of the Champions League and Copa del Rey, Varane had more time to rest between La Liga games. Raphael Varane travelled 30,000 kilometres with the French national team.

62 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED CLUB GAMES 44 NATIONAL GAMES PLAYED WITH TEAM GAMES 18 58 5 DAYS OF REST SEASON BREAKS 9 0 23 DAYS DAYS WINTER SUMMER BREAK DOWN PER COMPETITION 18 IN NATIONAL TEAM 32 IN LA LIGA 4 IN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 30, 000KM 4 IN COPA DEL REY FLOWN WITH 2 IN CLUB WORLD CUP NATIONAL TEAM 1 IN UEFA SUPER CUP 1 IN FRIENDLY CLUB GAMES 36 AT THE LIMIT 37

ARE FEMALE PLAYERS EXPOSED FREQUENTLY TO THE SAME CHALLENGES? In addition to the research on regional specificities, the professional women’s game also requires separate research ASKED to look into the player workload in elite women’s football. In general, our research on professional women’s football showcases QUESTIONS that while the women’s game represents an emerging industry within professional football many of the players are suffering from structural deficiencies in domestic leagues CAN ELITE PLAYERS PROTECT including a lack of matches and high level THEMSELVES AND IS REGULATORY competition. At the same time, the match INTERVENTION REQUIRED? calendar in professional women’s football is fragmented, forcing players to compete across Elite players are faced with vulnerable a range of different competitions, sometimes career paths and a short career span. From even for different clubs. a very early age, these players are faced with high workload, minimal rest periods and increasing demands in the professional game. IS THERE ANY ADDITIONAL MEDICAL Even at an elite level, the position of players EVIDENCE TO THE GUIDELINES PRESENTED? is vulnerable and volatile due to an extremely competitive employment market for players. Increasing match intensity and workload is Consequently, players feel pressured to associated with a higher risk of muscle injuries. protect their position at all cost – even if it is Besides the adequate management of players’ at the expense of their long term health and workload, the implementation of sufficient in- sustainability of their own career. Furthermore, and off-season breaks, and the implementation elite players are faced with high expectations of additional rest following long flights and demands from teams, coaches, sponsors, (especially those inducing jet-lag), attention media and the public. Even for elite players, it should be given to innovative methods of injury is challenging to articulate and demand the prevention. For instance, the implementation of appropriate protection and safeguards they hamstring specific exercises (such as the Nordic require in such an environment on an individual hamstring curl) leads to a 70-95% reduction basis. It is therefore necessary to empower of hamstring injuries. players, and provide a framework in which they are protected against external pressures HOW DO OTHER ELITE SPORTS which will ultimately have a damaging effect PROTECT THE HEALTH AND on themselves and the game. Regulatory intervention such as match caps could be PERFORMANCE OF THEIR ATHLETES? one of the pathways to be considered in Direct comparisons between elite sports are this context. difficult to make due to load specificities of each sport. However, there are some general IS A HEAVY WORKLOAD AN ISSUE observations which can be made. In comparison FOR ALL PLAYERS? with leading team sports in the United States, professional football operates a fragmented Increasing match intensity and high workload sporting calendar and features several different WE AS PLAYERS ARE THE ONES is indeed becoming an issue for a growing competition organisers at domestic and number of players. At the same time, new international level. As a consequence the game AFFECTED BY POLICY, PUTTING competition formats are also increasing cannot provide its players with guaranteed workload for a growing number of players. windows for rest and recovery. In comparison, Some players played an excessive amount of competition organisers in other team sports IN THE LABOUR, CARRYING THE games with both clubs and national teams. have introduced highly regulated off-season Others are not exposed to a sufficient number breaks to ensure rest and recovery and have HIGHEST RISK OF INJURY, AND WE of competitive games in their domestic collectively bargained all elements of player competition structures. This should serve load in game and practice times with the as a reminder that the football community relevant Player associations. HAVE SHORT LIFE SPANS IN THE should not only focus on the elite game but that we need to innovate and find better working solutions across all tiers of the INDUSTRY. professional industry.

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