Player Injuries Cost Europe’s Clubs Over £500m
Injuries to players cost over £500m last season (2021/22) according to the findings of the European Football Injury Index.
The research which focused on the men’s game showed injury costs for the continent’s top clubs broke through the half a billion-pound mark for the very first time (£513.23m / €610.75m).
The latest report published by Howden, comes against the backdrop of an ongoing debate concerning fixture congestion and demands for football’s authorities to implement radical reforms to the game’s calendar.
It delivers a detailed analysis of Europe’s major leagues and clubs and poses the question over whether the costs incurred due to injury are becoming unsustainable.
The total number of injuries sustained across all of Europe’s top five leagues was 4,810 over the course of last season – representing a 20% increase on the 3,988 injuries during the 2020/2021 season.
The English Premier League experienced the most injuries with 1,231 in total, a full 540 more than the lowest recorded in France’s Ligue 1 at 691.
As a result, English clubs suffered the greatest financial loss at £184.57m (€219.64m) with Spain’s LaLiga a distant second with £109.34m (€130.12m) paid out due to injured players.
In the Premier League, Chelsea’s injury woes saw them top the table with 97, whist Manchester United registered 81 injuries and Liverpool 80.
Manchester City clinched the Premier League title despite having an average of three unavailable players per match – a total of 67 injuries over the season.
Overall, French side Paris Saint Germain topped the table in terms of injury cost, paying out £34.22m (€40.73m) to injured players
Real Madrid recorded the highest number of absences at 114 and at the second highest cost of £33.95m (€40.41m)
James Burrows, Head of Sports at Howden, said: “The research confirms what leading club managers have been saying for a while now – injuries are on the rise across European football.
“With football’s authorities currently negotiating the game’s calendar the injury index provides a deep insight into the human and financial cost of a congested fixture list and a packed calendar.
“It will help answer the question of whether there’s just too much football being played.”
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