Real Madrid's pillar sets world record as a warning to FIFA

VHO - No one will play more than Federico Valverde in the 2025/26 season, with a total of 6,116 minutes in 72 matches, one and a half times higher than the recommended level by Fifpro. This is a serious warning for the greed of football authorities.

Valverde must play more than 6,000 minutes and 70 matches in the 2024/25 season

Modern football is no longer a nine-month affair. The 2024/25 season has seen many players play for nearly 11 months without rest.

The peak of this situation is the record set by midfielder Federico Valverde (Uruguay) this season: 6,116 minutes of playing in 72 matches - a number that stunned both experts and fans.

For Real Madrid and Uruguay, Valverde missed only 3 matches all season. According to Marca: Valverde set a world record for minutes played!

And this is clear evidence of the "exhaustion" that is happening in top-level football.

Another notable case: Luka Modric. At 39, the Croatian veteran has even more appearances (73 games) but fewer minutes because he mainly comes off the bench.

It is worth mentioning that the case of midfielders playing for Real Madrid is not an exception, many other players such as Bruno Fernandes, Maignan or Pedri have played more minutes than the recommended threshold (55 matches and 4,500 minutes per season) of the World Federation of Professional Footballers (FIFpro).

Players with most appearances in the 2024/25 season

Success or exhaustion

Speaking after the 2025 Club World Cup, FIFA President Gianni Infantino affirmed that this is "the most successful club tournament in the world", a global event bringing together top clubs and stars.

Behind that glamour, however, lies a hidden reality: physical exhaustion, psychological overload and increased injury risk at all levels.

Fifpro has reacted strongly. In a strongly worded statement, President Sergio Marchi called the Club World Cup “a fantasy show” staged by FIFA without any consultation with those directly involved – the players.

“We cannot continue to play with the health of players to feed a marketing machine,” Marchi insisted, likening FIFA and Infantino to the Roman Emperor Nero, who staged glamorous entertainments to appease public opinion while underneath there was inequality, lack of protection and poor working conditions for those who actually made the game.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino calls Club World Cup 2025 "the most successful club tournament in the world"

When dialogue is overlooked

Tensions between FIFA and Fifpro escalated when Fifpro was not invited to a meeting on player welfare, which took place just before the Club World Cup final – despite the organisation representing more than 66,000 male and female players worldwide.

Previously, Fifpro filed a complaint with the European Union, claiming that FIFA violated competition laws by unilaterally expanding the tournament and stuffing the competition schedule.

FIFA still insists it has reached a "consensus" with players' unions on ensuring a 72-hour break between matches, along with at least a 21-day break after each season.

However, this figure is still lower than the requirement from Fifpro – which recommends a minimum of 28 days off to recover both physically and mentally.

In addition, the extreme temperatures during the Club World Cup held in the US were also condemned by Fifpro. Although President Infantino admitted that “heat is a problem”, suggestions to adjust match times or have a mechanism to protect players have not received a satisfactory response.

Marchi called it an “unacceptable condition” and warned FIFA not to repeat the mistake at the 2026 World Cup.

Profit or people?

Club World Cup, new Champions League format, national championship, national super cup, World Cup qualifiers, Nations League... All are pushing players to the limit.

The fixture list is constantly expanding due to commercial pressure and television demands, despite warnings from sports scientists , medical professionals and insiders themselves.

Fifpro’s conclusion is clear: professional football cannot continue to operate on purely economic logic, ignoring the physical limits of human beings. When players are treated as profit-making tools, the quality of the game, the appeal of the game and the sustainability of the whole system are threatened.

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/the-thao/tru-cot-real-madrid-lap-ky-luc-the-gioi-thay-loi-canh-bao-toi-fifa-152197.html