Some elite women’s soccer players are facing tight schedules while others are unable to play, global players’ union FIFPRO said on Tuesday.
FIFPRO’s research highlighted a disproportionately heavy workload for some players, such as Mariona Caldentey, who made 64 appearances for Barcelona and Spain last season, winning all of them in four different competitions. Caldentey currently plays for Arsenal in England.
But FIFPRO also pointed out that many players have fewer than half that number of games. That means that only 33 games per season were average per player.
FIFPRO said its research “shows the impact of new or expanded competitions in some countries, particularly in Europe and North America, while in others there is little or no progress.” More top-level competitions, such as the Women’s Club World Cup, are in development.
Previously, as women’s football grew in popularity and competitions expanded, attention focused on the impact of a heavy schedule on players, particularly in terms of injuries, but FIFPRO is also raising concerns about ‘overload’.
Some players who made their country’s Olympic team in Paris this year have played fewer than 10 games ahead of the Games, FIFPRO said.
“There are two speeds of development in women’s football,” Alex Culvin, FIFPRO’s director of women’s football policy and strategic relations, said in a statement. “There are players who are under pressure due to the schedule and the fast pace of the game. This is an issue that is understandably receiving more attention, but there is a higher percentage of players who are not playing enough competitive games and are often overlooked.”
Culvin called for a “more balanced calendar” that creates more competitive opportunities while also ensuring rest.
The study comes at a time when FIFPRO is putting pressure on FIFA by intervening in a legal challenge to the event’s expanded men’s football schedule. Some male national team players even said they would consider going on strike if their schedules become busier.
