FIFPRO’s Concerns Over World Cup Scheduling
The global football players’ union, FIFPRO, is awaiting a meeting with FIFA to address concerns regarding match scheduling for the upcoming 2026 World Cup. This follows intense scrutiny over the extreme heat faced during this summer’s Club World Cup held in the United States.
Impact of Player Workload
In a recent 51-page report entitled “Overworked and Under-Protected – The Player Health and Performance Impact,” FIFPRO highlighted the adverse effects of player workload and insufficient recovery time during the summer tournament. The report specifically noted that top clubs like Chelsea, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, and Real Madrid all fell short of the recommended 28-day rest period, with Chelsea and Madrid receiving only 20 days each after the season, while PSG had as little as seven days to prepare for the pre-season.
The findings raised alarms about the physical toll on players engaged in this month-long tournament during June and July.
Call for Rethinking Scheduling
In light of the severe weather conditions that caused delays during the Club World Cup, FIFPRO urged FIFA to rethink the kick-off times and venue selection for next summer’s World Cup, which will include 48 teams from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. FIFPRO’s general secretary, Alex Phillips, expressed the organization’s disappointment at the lack of formal discussions with FIFA despite ongoing informal conversations at various levels.
“We regularly engage with FIFA on diverse fronts, including technical, medical, and other departments, but we have yet to finalize any substantial talks concerning the upcoming World Cup,”
Phillips remarked to reporters.
He acknowledged FIFPRO’s broader concerns beyond just one tournament, emphasizing that for most players worldwide, national leagues and competitions are their primary source of income.
Proactive Measures for Player Safety
In an effort to preemptively address scheduling challenges, Phillips mentioned that FIFPRO intends to present data and scientific evidence well before the tournament, reinforcing the need for safer scheduling practices overall. This proactive approach has already been applied to other events, such as the upcoming Women’s Asian Cup in Australia next March, where FIFPRO highlighted the unsuitability of scheduling matches at 1 p.m. in extreme heat.
Echoing Phillips, Alex Bielefeld, FIFPRO’s director of policy and strategic relations, pointed to the ‘wake-up call’ provided by the Club World Cup, emphasizing that existing regulations failed to account for rising global temperatures and their impacts on player performance and safety.
Bielefeld stressed the urgent necessity to reassess how match scheduling aligns with player welfare, warning that kick-off times set during peak heat conditions need to change to protect athletes in future tournaments.
