Fans are used to evaluating professional footballers only by their matches, goals scored or conceded. The life of the players outside the stadium is often known exclusively from the media, remaining out of sight. This is especially true of the training process, preparation for individual games and tournaments in general.
There is a contract
The age of the professional player is not very long. A rare master of the leather ball is in demand over the age of 35. That is why most footballers strive to secure their future in advance by trying to conclude a good contract with a strong club. They are helped in this by licensed agents who are able to solve sports and everyday problems of football players, to negotiate with clubs.
Now in Russia there are many legally registered and wealthy clubs that conclude full-fledged contracts with players for one or several seasons. They guarantee athletes not only well-paid jobs, but also create conditions for a comfortable life outside and after sports.
Base
Playing for a professional club, players usually live, as they say, in two houses. One of them is their apartment. The second, where during the season they visit and spend the night at least not less often, is the team's base and hotels when traveling to other cities and countries. At the club base, players are usually accommodated either during long training camps, most of which are still held abroad, or on the eve of the official matches of the season.
A modern training base for a football team of masters is a large sports and residential complex located, as a rule, outside the city. It consists of a comfortable hotel for players, coaches and staff with single and double rooms, a spacious room for theoretical studies and video viewing of games, meetings, a dining room, a medical and rehabilitation center, a gym, and sometimes a pool.
Several standard and non-standard football fields with different surfaces - natural from a grass mixture and artificial from synthetic fibers - have been laid on the base, as well as a mini-football gym or arena. A prerequisite is the availability of parking for club buses and cars.
Hotels
Coming to the games in other cities, the players settle in hotels corresponding to the status of the team and the financial situation of the clubs. The hotel is selected and booked in advance by the team administrator, focusing not only on prices, but also on comfort, good cuisine in the restaurant, proximity to the stadium, and safety. In case of emergency, representatives of the home club can come to the rescue.
Airplanes are another kind of "residence" for professional athletes. During the season, they sometimes fly on them from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok, spending many hours in the salons. For travel by air, both regular and charter liners are used. Other means of transport - buses and trains - are only possible when matches are held in their own city (for example, in Moscow, in which there are five Premier League teams at once) or in a nearby location.
Workouts
The number and duration of practical and theoretical training of football players, their visit to the sports and gym mainly depends on the plan drawn up by the head coach of the team. And also on what kind of tournament the team is preparing for, on its timing and importance. For those injured or recovering from injuries and illnesses, there are individual training plans agreed with the team doctor.
Most of the lessons, one or two times a day, take place at the club's stadium or at its base. In case of traveling to other cities, the team is engaged in the stadium where the game will take place one day before the start of the match. For valid reasons, for example, in bad weather, the training can be transferred to the reserve field or canceled altogether. The duration is determined by the head coach and is usually an hour and a half.
Publicity
Modern professional football is a bit similar to show business, at least in that it is in full view of millions of people, and not only avid fans. Unfortunately, the greatest interest, albeit sometimes unhealthy, is caused, unfortunately, by reports about the personal lives of football stars, about hobbies, wives, incidents and even scandals with their participation, about gigantic numbers in contracts and fights with teammates.
