Wenger to lead FIFA task force on player welfare

LONDON (Agencies): Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will lead a FIFA task force focused on player welfare, world soccer’s governing body said on Monday, amid concerns that packed schedules are taking a heavy physical and mental toll on players. Players’ union FIFPRO, Spain’s LaLiga and the European leagues’ group filed a joint complaint to European Union antitrust regulators earlier this month, accusing FIFA of “calendar abuse.” A FIFPRO report published last month said that some players get as little as 12% of the year to rest. FIFA’s new 32-team Club World Cup and revamped international competitions are set to further increase the number of matches per season. “The objective of the task force is to examine how suitable and effective safeguards for players can be implemented, also taking into account practical considerations from operational, medical, regulatory and legal perspectives,” FIFA said in a statement. Wenger, who has taken on the role of FIFA’s chief of global football development, said in a press release last December that there had been dramatic improvement in player welfare and it was “unrecognisable” from what it used to be. FIFA said its task force will make recommendations on players’ physical and mental wellbeing based on the latest scientific research. The task force will convene in the coming weeks, it added.