Football's global popularity is rising, along with player injuries

Football is booming. Premier League stadiums are packed to over 95% capacity to watch matches between teams from the top down to the bottom of the league table.¹ Broadcasting rights are commanding record fees, and player salaries are following suit. In 2025, the Premier League's wage bill hit a staggering £4 billion ($5.4 billion), averaging £8 million per player.²

Club valuations are also climbing. Real Madrid recently ranked as the most valuable professional football club at $6.75 billion, with Manchester United close behind.³

While still dwarfed by the men's game in terms of the levels of pay and investment, women's professional football is growing at pace in terms of attention, fan engagement, and the values involved. For example, at €41 million ($47.2 million), the prize money in the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 competition will be more than double⁴ the pot at the previous competition in 2022. And in 2023, almost two million fans attended FIFA Women's World Cup matches⁵ and more than two billion watched them on TV and online.

Football is a moneymaker, but behind the glamour and growth lies a challenging set of pressures for players. Injuries are rising - and fast.

The Hidden Cost of the Game

Headlines were made in 2024 when Manchester City superstar midfield Rodri warned about the physical toll on competitors who are playing more than 60 matches a year. “It's something that worries us because we are the guys that suffer,” he said.⁶

As a specialist provider of Accident & Health insurance for professional athletes around the world, and insurance partner to several European players' unions, at AXIS we share this concern. Analysis of our claims data show a sharp rise in both short-term and long-term injuries across men's professional football in the UK and mainland Europe. Meanwhile, career-ending injuries nearly doubled between 2020 to 2023.

Unfortunately, there are several high-profile examples of these serious and costly injuries. For example, soon after Rhodri raised concern about the strain on athletes caused by intense schedules, he suffered an ACL and meniscus injury that ruled him out for the remainder of the 2024/2025 Premier League season. His absence disrupted team performance and contributed to a challenging season for the club, which failed to win a trophy for the first time since the 2016/2017 season.

This isn't an isolated observation. Howden's 2023/24 Men's European football injury index also shows record highs in injuries and costs. This research specifically calls out an increase in injuries for younger players—under 21 years old—since the 2020-21 season.⁷

What's Driving the Surge in Injury?

While no single factor explains the rise in injuries, several trends are likely contributing:

• Pitch surfaces - Despite improvements in the quality of artificial turf, many players still prefer natural grass. A widely cited study 20 years ago showed no difference in injury rates, but skepticism around artificial surfaces remain.⁸
• Travel demands - The sport's global nature requires professionals to travel not just for their domestic league commitments but for continental tournaments, international friendlies, and national team duties, with different time zones putting extra strain on body recovery.
• Player loads - As Rodri pointed out, many players are logging over 60 matches a year. A 2024 NIH study confirmed that players with higher workload and more travel experienced more injuries.⁹
• Early specialization - There is a growing trend for players to begin elite training earlier than ever. Youth football, especially in Europe, is attracting and developing talented players in their teens. The demands of elite training at an early age may create injury risks that are not yet fully understood.

Our experience of underwriting these risks every day combined with claims analysis points to a fundamental shift in the injury landscape in which the frequency and severity of injuries are increasing. For our part, this requires specialist carriers to apply a more agile and data-driven approach to underwriting and to collaborate with partners and insureds to expand awareness around the risks and possible preventative strategies.

A Call for Smarter Underwriting

As football fans, we feel the highs and lows of every match while as underwriters we must take a clear-eyed view of the risks. Curbing this escalation in claims related to severe injuries, especially career-ending ones, requires a rigorous underwriting and risk management approach that reflects the evolving risk of injury and applies the data, tools, and resources we have to build a clearer view of risk. At AXIS, we're adapting to meet the moment and that means elevating underwriting standards while balancing coverage levels and terms with the evolving risk dynamics. This market is not for fair-weather fans. But it is one where thoughtful, data-informed underwriting can make a difference.

Protecting the Game's Greatest Assets

Insurance carriers play a critical role in providing financial protection for players and their clubs against catastrophic injuries. Clubs, insurers and governing bodies have the opportunity to work together to develop smarter mitigation strategies that focus on a number of areas including proactively managing player's gametime, offering holistic injury management programs including nutrition, and more. From advanced analytics to tailored insurance products, the future of football depends on proactive collaboration to protect its most valuable assets - its players.

Because when the final whistle blows, it's not just about the score. It's about ensuring that the stars of the game can keep shining - safely and sustainably.

• ¹ https://www.givemesport.com/how-full-each-202425-premier-league-stadium-is-on-match-days/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• ² https://www.thesun.ie/sport/15262357/premier-league-wage-bill-revealed-man-utd/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• ³ https://www.forbes.com/sites/justinteitelbaum/2025/05/30/the-worlds-most-valuable-soccer-teams-2025/
• ⁴ https://www.uefa.com/womenseuro/news/0294-1c9564c67968-ad59e8707559-1000--uefa-women-s-euro-2025-record-prize-money-will-feature-desig/
• ⁵ https://inside.fifa.com/tournament-organisation/commercial/news/tender-launched-media-rights-fifa-womens-world-cup-2027-europe-central-asia
• ⁶ https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/sep/17/rodri-players-close-to-striking-volume-games-manchester-city
• ⁷ https://www.howdengroupholdings.com/reports/2023-24-mens-european-football-injury-index
• ⁸ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2577464/
• ⁹ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11360389/#sec1-sports-12-00212

This material is for general information, education, and discussion purposes only. Statements contained herein are not professional or legal advice of AXIS or its affiliates. AXIS makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained herein and is under no obligation to update or revise the information as a result of new information, research or future events. AXIS assumes no liability by reason of the information within this material.