FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Nations League - League A - Group 3 - Netherlands v Germany - Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands - September 10, 2024 Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann before the match REUTERS/Thilo Schmuelgen/File Photo
ZENICA, Bosnia and Herzegovina (Reuters) - The growing number of matches across many soccer competitions which has triggered talk of a player strike must lead to a review of breaks in the sport, Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann said on Thursday.
Nagelsmann, speaking ahead of Friday's Nations League game against Bosnia and Herzegovina, said despite calls to reduce the number of games they would likely increase in the future.
Expanded Champions League and FIFA Club World Cup formats, alongside enlarged national team competitions, have created a greater number of games for top teams and players.
"I have often said that I won't complain about the calendar. A lot of matches are financing this sport," Nagelsmann told a press conference.
"You have to have a healthy balance. I don't think there will be fewer games in the future. There will be more matches and we should be talking about how to structure the breaks (between competitions)," he said.
Nagelsmann said in competitions like the NBA basketball league or the NFL players have months-long breaks between seasons despite playing more matches on average than most football players.
"NBA players play 85 games or so but then have a long break. The NFL (American football) has a long break. We don't have that in football. The players just don't get any break."
Top footballers are usually busy early in the European summer with their national teams and now have to cope with the new Club World Cup format starting next year.
FIFA has defended its calendar as necessary, while the president of European body UEFA has said the issue affects only a minority of players.
The Germans, who host the Netherlands on Monday, are top of Nations League Group A3 on four points from two matches, ahead of the Dutch on goal difference. Bosnia and Hungary have one point each.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Ed Osmond)
