England star Phil Foden and other Premier League footballers are among the most dangerously overworked in the world, according to players’ union Fifpro.
Manchester City midfielder Foden played 72 times for club and country last season and was one of six players from the English top division to make 70 or more appearances, according to Fifpro.
The global union argues that players should be restricted to between 50 and 60 matches per year in all competitions to avoid burnout and injury.
“This is the red line. We need to protect the product,” said Maheta Molango, the chief executive of the Professional Footballers’ Association.
“We need to protect the players from themselves. They love playing, because they are committed to playing because they are also competitors, and they don’t want to lose their starting spot.”
Fifpro’s latest Player Workload Monitoring data, which studied 1,500 male players in the 2023-24 season, found that former Manchester City forward Julian Alvarez played the most games with 75.
Foden, Liverpool trio Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo, Aston Villa’s John McGinn and Arsenal forward Kai Havertz also ranked in the top 10.
Foden’s workload is projected to increase to 77 this season and 83 in 2025-26, as a result of more matches being added to European club competitions, the Club World Cup and the World Cup.
Tottenham and Argentina defender Cristian Romero racked up the most international travel last season, making 26 international trips and covering 162,978km.
Some players had as little as one day of rest per week on average, which Fifpro says breaches international occupational health and safety standards.
Three in 10 players played twice a week for six weeks in a row or more.