Many English Premier League clubs are set to be negatively hit by the workload on their players playing at the ongoing 2026 World Cup, which is set to conclude on Sunday, July 19, 2026.
It was gathered that with the World Cup final scheduled just 33 days before the kickoff of the 2026/27 Premier League season, a severe player exhaustion and injury crisis is brewing.
Fresh data revealed that the burden of this expanded tournament is falling unevenly on England’s elite clubs, threatening to disrupt the opening weeks of domestic football.
The Workload Data
Among the Premier League clubs hit hardest by the 2026 World Cup workload is Manchester City.
Manchester City sits firmly at the top of the World Cup exhaustion index.
Manchester City (5,027 minutes): Manchester City sent a contingent of 19 players to North America. Key figures like Rodri (537 minutes) and Marc Guéhi (483 minutes) have endured massive minutes under grueling summer conditions.
Elliot Anderson, who is moving from Nottingham Forest to the Etihad, has added a further 533 minutes for England.
Arsenal (4,285 minutes): The Gunners are right behind their rivals. Mikel Arteta will be sweating over the conditioning of foundational stars like William Saliba (450 minutes for France) and Declan Rice (386 minutes for England), alongside Noni Madueke 288, Bukayo Saka 267, Mikel Merino 136 and Eberechi Eze 130.
Liverpool, Aston Villa and Manchester United follow, all above 2,500 minutes.
Brentford are among the teams represented least, with slightly more than 600 minutes.
The Injury Casualty List
It isn’t just cumulative fatigue keeping club medical staffs awake at night; major injuries have already severely impacted pre-season blueprints.
Amadou Onana (Aston Villa): The most devastating blow belongs to Villa. The Belgian midfielder suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during Belgium’s 4-1 victory over the USA, sidelining him for months.
Manuel Ugarte (Manchester United): United’s defensive midfielder had his tournament cut short during the group stage after picking up a concerning knee problem with Uruguay.
Jordan Henderson (Brentford): In a bizarre turn of events, the veteran broke his arm while celebrating England’s victory over Mexico.
Football’s Packed Calendar
Seven of Arsenal’s squad could have played up to 65 matches this season – depending on their availability – with 57 matches during the 2025-26 season and eight at the World Cup.
Manchester City and Chelsea have players who have competed in three consecutive summer tournaments.
The Euros and Copa America took place in 2024, followed by last summer’s Club World Cup and then this year’s World Cup.
What this means for the Premier League restart
Players who have competed at this summer’s World Cup are entitled to at least three weeks off, according to Fifa regulations.
Players who feature in next Sunday’s final will not return to their clubs until 10 August, at the earliest. Less than two weeks before the new Premier League season begins.
There will be five Premier League matchweeks before an extended international break on 21 September.
