Kevin De Bruyne warns ‘real problems’ will come as Man City ace accuses FIFA of valuing money over players

De Bruyne’s concerns reflect growing discontent among athletes about the ever-expanding football calendar, which leaves little room for recovery. The Belgian specifically pointed out the impending difficulties players will face following the 2025 Club World Cup, which has been expanded to include 32 teams, and will be held in June in the United States. He fears that the short turnaround between its conclusion and the start of the next Premier League season will leave players dangerously fatigued.

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  WHAT DE BRUYNE SAID

  “The real problem will emerge after the Club World Cup,” De Bruyne told reporters.

  “We know there will be only three weeks between the Club World Cup final and the first Premier League match. So, we have three weeks to rest and prepare for another 80 matches. Maybe this year things will be OK, but next year could be problematic. The Professional Footballers’ Association in England and other player associations have tried to find solutions. The issue is that UEFA and FIFA keep adding extra matches, and we can raise concerns, but no solutions have been found. It seems that money speaks louder than the players.”

  • THE BIGGER PICTURE

    The international players’ union, FIFPRO, along with its European member unions, has taken legal action against FIFA over this expansion, arguing that the increased number of matches will only add to the strain on players. The players’ union argues that the ever-growing fixture list is unsustainable and that competition organisers are failing to prioritise the health and welfare of the athletes who make these tournaments possible. FIFPRO’s latest report, released on Thursday, revealed that some players are given as little as 12% of the calendar year to rest and recover.

  • DID YOU KNOW?

    Despite these warnings, not everyone agrees with the notion that players are facing an increased workload. The International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES), an independent research centre based in Switzerland, conducted its own study and found no data-driven evidence that elite players are experiencing a significant rise in workload compared to previous decades. According to CIES, which was founded in partnership with FIFA, the number of matches played by top clubs has remained relatively consistent since the early 2000s.

    CIES’s report on Manchester City, the reigning Club World Cup champions, revealed that the team played around 63 per cent of its matches during the 2023-2024 season in league competitions. 4.8 per cent of their games were friendlies, while fixtures organised by FIFA stood at 3.2 per cent. Meanwhile, UEFA matches comprised 17.7 per cent of City’s total matches. These figures, according to CIES, do not indicate a significant increase in overall match frequency.

    • GOAL

      WHAT NEXT?

      As FIFA and UEFA continue to expand their competitions, the divide between players and organisers appears to be widening. On the other hand, the English football structure remains one of the most physically demanding landscapes in the world. Last season, the Premier League recorded the highest number of successive domestic matches (87), with clubs often playing games just days apart. Teams in England’s top flight averaged a recovery time of only 67.3 hours between matches, the shortest in any major European league. This intense schedule places immense pressure on players, who are often expected to perform at their peak with minimal rest.