Neymar, Thibaut Courtois, Kevin De Bruyne, Eder Militao, and now Gavi are all out with long-term injuries. Teams across Europe are all facing injury crises and we are not even halfway into the new season.
In the entirety of the last Premier League season, there were 4 ACL injuries. Five game weeks into the new season, that number was already surpassed. So why are so many footballers getting injured? Let’s get a deeper look into it.
Why is Everyone Injured?
Football is probably one of the most physically demanding sports and injuries are a part and parcel of the game. Most of the injuries are directly related to muscle fatigue. For any footballer to keep competing at the top level, a good recovery is a must.
On Average, a professional footballer plays more than 50 matches in a season for Club and Country. Footballers play twice a week and their recovery period is hampered and thus, it may result in injuries.
Why are Players Getting Injured So Often?
As we mentioned earlier, injuries are directly related to Muscle fatigue, but there are many reasons why players are getting injured so often.
Let’s look into a few of them:
Stacked Scheduled
The 2023 World Cup was played in winter (November – December) due to the weather conditions in Qatar. A World Cup usually happens after a Football season is over and thus to accommodate the World Cup in between the seasons many club matches were stacked before and after the World Cup and thus we saw many players getting injured after the World Cup.
International Tours
Due to the commercialization of football, Clubs usually travel to different continents to play their pre-season games like in the USA or Asia. While it is a great way to attract new fans it takes a toll on the players.
Too many competitions
Footballers compete in various tournaments during the year such as the League, UEFA Champions League, Domestic Cups, Club World Cup, and International tournaments like the UEFA Euros, Nations League, Qualifiers, and Friendlies. Thus, the probability of injury increases.
Longer matches
Don’t get us wrong! Football is still a 90-minute game but due to the new rules, we are seeing much longer added injury time, and sometimes the matches run for over 100 minutes and it affects the players.
Is Too Much Football Ruining Football?
While injuries are a part of the sport considering the physical nature of the game, we also have to look at the nature of the injuries. Most of the injuries that have occurred this season are non-contact injuries which indicates the lack of recovery time for the players.
The way things are going it could get even worse for the players as the Governing bodies i.e. FIFA and UEFA have expanded their respective Tournaments. From the 2024/25 season, the UEFA Champions League will follow a new format where there will be more teams playing more matches. The Same is true with the FIFA Club World Cup.
Apart from club football injuries also happen in International breaks, as we have recently seen with Real Madrid’s French Midfielder Eduardo Camavinga and the Spaniard Gavi.
International tournaments like the UEFA Nations League are heavily criticized by fans and players. Then there are International friendlies being played in between a highly stacked footballing calendar.
There were also talks for the FIFA World Cup to be contested every 2 years instead of 4, while it could bring in very mouth-watering commercial deals and increase the revenue multiple folds. But from the player’s perspective, that would mean having 2 weeks break every season.
Conclusion
Injuries are part and parcel of the game, but some injuries can be avoided,
They are the worst thing that can happen to any player and could be career-threatening. The Governing bodies should look at football as a sport first and then as a business and they should come up with a schedule such that the players get enough time to recover before they are on the field again.
That’s all for today we will be back with another story soon.
