Real Madrid beat Chelsea, Barca and Man Utd to top injury-cost table

Robin Bairner

Updated: 23 Mar 2022 12:02 CDT
3 min read

Eden Hazard, Real Madrid, 2021/22 — © ProShots

Real Madrid have spent more money than any other major European team on players out injured so far during the 2021/22 season, beating out Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona and Chelsea into first place in the unwanted league table.

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In total, clubs in Europe’s Big Five leagues have spent €280m million on player wages when out either injured or ill up to and including 18 January, 2021. Indeed, Covid-19 has caused absences of €38.5m – the second-costliest reason for absence behind only hamstring injuries (€44m).

In a study conducted by insurance company Howden, Real Madrid had spent €19.52 million on missing players, a Europe-leading figure. This compares to La Liga rivals Barcelona, whose outlay has been €14.82m.

Los Blancos were plagued by a raft of problems at the start of the season that saw big-earners Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard both miss out for extended periods.

Meanwhile, the biggest spending league when it comes to injury issues is the Premier League, with close to €108m wasted on wages between the 20 clubs. This compares to €58m in La Liga, €45m in Serie A, €38m in the Bundesliga and €32m in Ligue 1.

Among England’s elite, it is Chelsea who have spent the most money on injured players this year, with an outlay of €16.83m, which is the second most in Europe. Manchester United come second in the Premier League standings, with the Old Trafford club seeing €14m in wages go to injured stars.

Europe's biggest spending clubs on injuries (2021/22)

This compares to league leaders Manchester City, who have a total injury cost of just €9.64m, and second placed Liverpool, who have spent €11.23m on injured stars. While it is generally the biggest teams who are spending most on injured players, relegation-threatened Everton buck that trend by coming in fifth in the Premier League on €8.47m.

At the other end of the scale, Crystal Palace have had an outlay of just €1.03m on injured players, though this is still relatively high in European terms. Montpellier have spent the least of Europe’s big five league’s on injured players, with their total estimated to be a paltry €80,000.

Ligue 1 side PSG are also noteworthy in that they have spent €16.79m on injured stars this season – more than every other team in France’s top flight combined.