Howden’s 2024/25 Men’s European Football Injury Index

London/Munich, 17 December 2025: Global insurance broker Howden has published the “Men’s European Football Injury Index” for the fifth time. In the past season, the five European leagues analysed (Bundesliga, Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A) recorded 4,456 injuries – the second-highest figure after the record-breaking 2021/2022 season. Interestingly, overall costs fell significantly compared to the previous two years, amounting to €676.14 million. Notably, the Bundesliga reported by far the highest injury rates among the European top leagues.

Over the past five years, the Howden report recorded a total of 22,596 injuries, with overall costs of €3.45 billion across all five European top leagues.

Bundesliga continues to lead in injury numbers

The results show that players in Germany’s Bundesliga face the highest injury rate among Europe’s top leagues:

• Highest injury rate and case numbers: Bundesliga players were affected by injuries far more often than any other league over the past five seasons (6,177 cases, averaging 1,235 per season). The Bundesliga consistently recorded the highest number of injuries among Europe’s top five leagues.
• Shorter absence despite high injury rate: The average downtime per injury in Germany is below the overall average, even though the injury frequency is the highest, with one injury every 569 minutes.
• Injuries as a major cost factor: Despite high injury rates, costs remain below those of other leagues but still represent a significant burden – averaging €115.95 million per season.
• Lowest average cost per injury: Interestingly, the Bundesliga is the only top-five league with average injury costs below €100,000 per case. In comparison, the English Premier League’s figure is more than twice as high.

Across the five seasons analysed, there were seven instances where clubs recorded more than 100 injuries in a single season. Six of these cases involved Bundesliga clubs. Borussia Mönchengladbach stands out, suffering this fate in two consecutive seasons (2022/23 and 2023/24), averaging 2.86 injuries per competitive match.

Bayern Munich also appears twice in this ranking. While the German record champions managed to win the title in 2021/22 despite 103 injuries, the 107 injuries in 2022/23 – 40 more than the league average – likely hindered their title challenge. This was the first season since 2011/12 in which Bayern failed to win the Bundesliga. Across all five seasons analysed, Bayern Munich was the only club to record an above-average injury rate every single year.

Jörn Prehn, Head of Professional Sports and Special Risks at Himmelseher Sportversicherung (HiSV) (part of Howden Germany), says:
“Compared to other European top leagues, the Bundesliga has had the highest injury rate for years. This fact, along with associated costs of more than €100 million, impacts risk management concerning personnel expenses and transfer values for Bundesliga clubs.”

Europe-wide costs, injury numbers and types

The renowned Howden European Men’s Football Injury Index also provides further insights into the impact of injuries on the 96 teams in the five top European leagues during the 2024/25 season. By position, strikers have the least playing time on average but are the most injury-prone.

Manchester United has borne the highest injury costs of any club over the past five years. In the 2023/24 season, the Red Devils paid €53.89 million (£45.28 million) in wages to injured players – averaging €670,000 (£560,000) per injury. Chelsea follows closely behind with €52.22 million (£43.88 million) in injury costs in 2022/23.

It is also noteworthy that younger players are particularly affected by injuries. Players under 21 years of age were, relatively speaking, the most frequently injured across all five top European men’s leagues during the past four seasons (2021/22 to 2024/25).

The data also shows that the FIFA Club World Cup in the summer – which in Germany is linked to FC Bayern Munich star Jamal Musiala’s serious injury – had only minimal impact on the overall number of injuries during that period. However, when extending the timeframe to the three months following the tournament, two significant outliers emerge:

• Between June and October 2025, Chelsea – winners of the FIFA Club World Cup – recorded 23 injuries, the highest among all European teams participating in the tournament. This represents a 44% increase compared to the same period in 2023/24.
• Manchester City, who reached the round of 16, had no injuries during the tournament but recorded 22 injuries in the three months afterwards (August to October 2025).

The full report on the Men’s European Football Injury Index 2024/25, which also includes a comprehensive analysis of injury data across Europe’s top leagues, is available below in its original English version.