Taller, faster, older: How top footballers’ bodies have changed over 50 years

Studies suggest that in the 1970s, players walked, jogged or ran an average of 8.7km per match – and this rose to a peak of 11.4km in the 1990s, but has since dropped. Players in the 2022 World Cup covered an average distance per match of 10.6km, according to Fifa, though it varied between different positions.