Football injuries 'up 20%' across Europe's top leagues in 2021-22 season: Study

InjuriesacrossEurope'stopfiveleaguesrose by20per centin the 2021/22 season, according to a study published on Wednesday, as arguments intensify overfootball's congested calendar ahead of the World Cup.

The study by insurance brokers Howden found clubs paid a record-high price forinjuriesof £513 million ($550 million) last season. Injurycost was calculated by multiplying the cost per day of a player by the number of days they were unavailable because of aninjury.

World players' union FIFPRO says structures must be put in place to limit player workloads. For the first time this year a European campaign will be interrupted by a mid-season World Cup, causing further fixture congestion either side of the tournament in Qatar, which starts on November20.

European governing body UEFA has increased the number of competitive games with the addition of the Nations League to the international schedule and is expanding European club competitions from 2024. World governing body FIFA is set to follow suit, with the World Cup expanded to 48 teams from 2026.

The Premier League had the highestinjurycost of any of thetopfive divisions at nearly £185 million, with La Liga in Spain a distant second on £109 million. French champions Paris Saint-Germain had the highestinjurycost of any club inEuropeat £34 million.

Injuriesin the Premier League wereupto 1,231 in 2021/22, compared to 938 the season before. The permanent adoption of five substitutions per side byfootball's lawmakers IFAB is designed to lessen the load on players.

But FIFPRO is urging FIFA to go further by mandating minimum rest periods of four weeks in the off-season and a mid-season break of two weeks for each player.