FIFA has an unwavering commitment to look after football’s most important protagonists – the players. Throughout 2021, further steps were taken to ensure the well-being and continued development of all players within the professional game.
FIFA launches pioneering platform
In January 2021, FIFA launched the FIFA Professional Football Landscape, the first-ever digital database comprising key facts and figures on players, clubs, transfers and top-tier competitions across all 211 member associations.
Bringing together data from a broad spectrum of key performance indicators that reflect the status of clubs and leagues worldwide, the tool offers a detailed visual overview of the game.
In January 2021, FIFA launched the FIFA Professional Football Landscape, the first-ever digital database comprising key facts and figures on players, clubs, transfers and top-tier competitions across all 211 member associations.
Bringing together data from a broad spectrum of key performance indicators that reflect the status of clubs and leagues worldwide, the tool offers a detailed visual overview of the game.
Facts and figures
The FIFA professional football landscape provides a fascinating insight into the structure of professional football across the world, including the following takeaways:
Nearly 130,000 professional players and more than 4,400 professional clubs have been identified around the world.
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91 % of member associations have implemented a national club licensing system.
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54 % of domestic competitions around the world follow a traditional home-and-away format.
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65 % of national top-tier competitions are organized by the respective football association.
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88 % of competition organizers negotiate their TV rights deals collectively.
FIFA Professional Football Conference
FIFA and stakeholders from across the professional game met virtually in November 2021 to discuss a range of topics in men’s football, including the ongoing reform of the transfer system and the gathering of various perspectives on the future of the International Match Calendars.
The conference provided FIFA Chief of Global Football Development Arsène Wenger with an opportunity to outline his proposals for the future of the International Match Calendars, alongside Technical Director Steven Martens.
In addition to a mandatory rest period for players, the topic of international qualification windows was discussed, as well as potential solutions for achieving a suitable balance between international and domestic competitions for clubs, leagues and players. Delegates from over 50 of FIFA’s member associations participated, together with members of the media.