The relationship between club and international football has always been shaky at best. Clubs fear injuries that could derail an entire season while international teams pine for their nation’s top talents — a complex conflict of interest.
Nowhere is the conflict as prominent as the FIFA World Cup. Clubs have no choice but to surrender their talent to their national teams. The hesitancy isn’t a product of not wanting players to represent their countries on the world’s greatest stage. It is rather a matter
of risk.
Already fatigued after a long season of club football, players are at a heightened risk of injury — not to mention the select few who decide to play through afflictions for the pride of representing their country at the World Cup. Germany’s Lennart Karl and Nico Schlotterbeck suffered tournament-ending injuries, while Belgium’s Amadou Onana sustained a torn ACL mid-tournament. Argentinian pair Facundo Medina and Lisandro Martínez both face an extended stint on the sidelines, England’s Tino Livramento picked up a fresh setback in a long line of past injuries, and Morocco’s Abde Ezzalzouli was ruled out for six weeks after injuring his knee.
Among other reasons, to make up for the immense risk FIFA offers compensation for clubs whose players feature at the World Cup.
According to Kicker (via @iMiaSanMia), Bayern Munich is one of the clubs that will benefit the most.
Compensation payments paid out by FIFA to clubs for releasing their players for the World Cup:
1- Manchester City €3.08m
2- PSG €2.49m
3- Arsenal €2.42m
4- Bayern €2.3m
5- Barcelona €2.2m
6- Chelsea €2.12m
Whether the compensation provided by FIFA truly outweighs the extra kilometres players clock and a heightened risk of injury is up for debate. But, the fact that there is compensation — a luxury that didn’t always exist — is a step in the right direction.
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