When it comes to domestic football, or ‘soccer’ as it is known in the US, it is probably fair to say that European clubs have it easier when it comes to travelling for games, albeit with the exception of Champions League/Europa League/Europa Conference League matches.
Certainly in the English Premier League, for example, there really isn’t that much distance in terms of the furthest clubs. Indeed, currently, the two Premier League clubs that are the furthest from one another are Newcastle United and Bournemouth – a distance of 354 miles, according to Google Maps.
While it is unlikely each club makes the journey by road, which would still only be no longer than six hours – a quick 40 minute flight is likelier, the driving time would pale in comparison to some of those that MLS clubs (in theory) would have to make if they went by road.
Some Premier League clubs fly to matches now – if the distance is deemed to be too much, while it has also been known for them to catch a train – especially clubs coming from London, though invariably a lot of clubs do still go by road on the coach, especially if the travel time is no more than four hours. This is often the same for most European clubs as well.
Generally speaking though, in the US, with the MLS firstly split into two different conferences (Eastern and Western), comprising of 29 teams – 26 from the US and three from Canada, with each team playing each other twice in a season (home and away), it is very rare for there to be more than one team in the same state.
Obviously a state in the US can invariably be the same size as England, or two or three times bigger, which rules out the possibility of teams travelling to games by road.
How Does This Affect Sleep?
When a football team has a substantial demand on their travel time, this can have a considerable effect on a player’s sleep. Certainly in Europe, it is often the case that teams (even home teams), stay in a hotel the night before matchday, which can affect a player’s routine.
However, in the MLS, teams will be making five or six hour flights to get to a game (the day before) and, sometimes at unsociable hours, to then have to stay in a hotel. So, should a team fly in the early hours and that flight is five hours – sleeping on the plane will be inevitable. Even though this may be a private plane, there still wouldn’t be a great deal of comfort.
The same for the hotel that the players would be staying in. Many of these do go out of their way to try and be as hospitable as they can – trying to make sure players are as comfortable as possible and, as such, there are many options in terms of beds like Simba Sleep with the best hotels keen to make sure they have quality options for distinguished guests. However, this does not seem to have had too much negative effect on Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi, who made the switch from Europe and, who seems to still be in top form!
Ultimately, it is fair to say that MLS teams do have an added strain on their season than European teams, due to travel time and, as a result, making sure that sleep comfort is near the top of the list is a top priority in order to make sure they can perform to the best of their ability.