ANALYSIS: The Matildas' Asian Cup failure shows Australian football is falling behind. A new FIFPro study shows why
this week, former Football Fern and FIFPro's current director of global policy and strategic relations for women's football, Sarah Gregorius, said under-loading of players and match scheduling were two of the most significant issues holding women's football back today, but there had been little hard research into the baseline numbers in order to improve them.
"When I was playing, and particularly juggling club and international football, you did feel as if you were certainly slammed in some parts of the year and then sort of twiddling your thumbs thinking, 'How do I keep myself ticking over, because I'm not experiencing the same amount of competitive matches that I have at other points in the year?'
The Matildas' most recent Asian Cup campaign was a snapshot of the disparities in match minutes in Australia's ALW and other leagues around the world. Both Sweden's Damallsvenskan and Norway's Toppserien, where four of the squad play, offer 16-round league seasons with 12 and 10 teams respectively, in addition to separate Cup and Champions League competitions.
COVID-19 has also seen ALW matches regularly shuffled around, including this month's "Football Frenzy" that will see teams play up to seven matches in the next four weeks, further reflects FIFPro's aforementioned concern about a high number of matches played in a short space of time, which could increase the risk of injury and burn-out.
This contract insecurity, coupled with the minimal match calendar and bloated off-season, often sees players having to work second jobs in order to make ends meet, restricting the amount of time they can physically and psychologically dedicate to football.
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