Central imaging services were the most used medical resource at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, with 129 of 832 athletes assessed in the polyclinic and over half of teams requiring additional equipment.
Observational (n=2,262)
No
What were the medical service requirements and utilization rates at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022?
Central imaging services were the most utilized medical resource at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, providing data to inform future sporting event medical planning.
OBJECTIVE: The Football World Cup is among the biggest sporting events in the world, but data to inform the requirements of medical care for such tournaments are limited. This study describes the athlete and team medical services at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 . METHODS: Three different medical service entities were identified through a needs analysis based on expert advice, team physician interviews and questionnaires prior to the event: 'Team Services' to provide any workforce or equipment needs of the teams, a 'Polyclinic' to manage any acute medical demands, and a 'recovery centre' to improve game readiness throughout the tournament. All services had been set up prior to the tournament and thoroughly tested. RESULTS: Of a total of 832 athletes, ~1300 team delegation and ~130 match officials, 167 individuals including 129 (77%) athletes and 38 (23%) non-athletes were assessed in the polyclinic. For the 129 athletes (median 4 players per team), medical imaging was the most requested service, which peaked during the group phase of the tournament. Most requests were received during normal working hours despite many games finishing late at night. 30 of the 32 participating teams solicited medical services for their players at least once. Three teams made use of the recovery facilities, and 17 teams requested additional medical equipment or clinical assistance. CONCLUSION: Central imaging services was the most used medical resource at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, and over half of teams required additional medical equipment or personnel. These data may inform planning of medical services for similar events in the future.
Schumacher et al. (Fri,) conducted a observational in Athletes and team delegations at a major sporting event (n=2,262). Medical services (Team Services, Polyclinic, recovery centre) was evaluated on Utilization of medical services. Central imaging services were the most used medical resource at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, with 129 of 832 athletes assessed in the polyclinic and over half of teams requiring additional equipment.