The schedule is relentless for the modern men’s footballer. They often need to be primed to play twice a week and matches are especially bunched this season because of the World Cup in Qatar. Helpfully, footballers are almost superhuman, built for the physical rigours of a high-tempo sport and backed by incredible science and coaching to keep them at their best.
The science behind nutrition, fitness and medical treatment is helping footballers achieve their athletic peak. At the top level they are playing more games than ever. Going into the 2018 World Cup, 29 players had featured for more than 5,000 minutes in the previous 12 months, but almost three times as many did so in the year before the European Championship in 2021. Their bodies are capable of doing more and are still being able to recover within a limited time frame.
