Ulf Baranowsky, Managing Director of the Association of Contract Soccer Players (VDV), sees the legal regulation in Germany according to which soccer players only have the right to six weeks’ sick pay by their club in the event of violations as a clear competitive disadvantage compared with England.
“The players in the English Premier League generally receive full sick and injured pay, in some cases even beyond the end of the contract,” Baranowsky told the news portal watson.de.
According to the VDV official, this is a clear competitive advantage of the Premier League over the Bundesliga. If national player Leroy Sane changes from English champion Manchester City to German record champion Bayern Munich despite his cruciate ligament injury, he will have to take losses into account or negotiate a special deal with FC Bayern. The ex-Schalker is threatened with a six-month break.
“A professional kicker is a normal employee of his football club. If a football player injures himself, he is generally entitled to six weeks’ sick pay”, Christian Schmeckmann outlined the regulation in Germany. He is head of the pension fund of the German Football Association (DFB) and the VDV. Among other things, he takes care of insurance for professional footballers.
If the player or consultant has negotiated well with the club, the club has to pay the salary for a longer period if the footballer is injured, for example a quarter or half year,” says Schmeckmann.
Most of the top players would also have taken out private insurance. “Up to 1800 euros per day in sick pay can be taken out with leading German insurance companies and can be customary for a highly paid professional,” Schmeckmann stressed – with the exception of possible foreign insurance policies.
