'Good communication and good team building, it's half of the work in managing a player': how team doctors perceive communication in the European professional men's football context.

Abstract

Communication influences players' performance and health and is influenced by the leadership style of coaches, internal team communication and the integration of the medical team in the professional men's football setting. However, the communication process between medical teams and other stakeholders in professional football has not been described in depth. Therefore, we explored the perspectives of team doctors regarding the communication process within the medical team and with other stakeholders in men's professional football. We conducted semistructured interviews with 10 team doctors from nine teams in six countries playing at the highest level of European professional football participating in the UEFA Elite Club Injury Study. Data were audio recorded, transcribed and analysed through reflexive thematic analysis. Three main themes described the communication process: (1) communication practices, (2) communication context and (3) communication foundation. The communication practices included involving specific stakeholders, using different communication channels and considering timing. The contextual factors in team structure, available resources and team standings require them to adapt their communication strategies. The foundation of effective communication relied on cultivating trust, acting respectfully, defining clear roles, following ethics and proactively developing relationships over time. In conclusion, the communication process is highly influenced by the context while team doctors constantly communicate with a diverse stakeholder group. This requires the team doctors to adapt to the different scenarios of professional football and dedicate time and effort to cultivating trustworthy relationships with stakeholders.