Bayern Munich have called on national associations to place greater emphasis on player welfare, with the club set to receive compensation over an injury to Alphonso Davies.
In March, Davies ruptured his cruciate ligament while representing Canada in a CONCACAF Nations League third-place play-off match against the United States.
As a result, Davies missed the remainder of the Bundesliga season, as well as Bayern’s Champions League quarter-final defeat to Inter, while he will also sit out the Club World Cup and Canada’s Gold Cup campaign.
In the aftermath of the injury, Bayern’s sporting director Christoph Freund described Canada’s handling of Davies as “sloppy”, and they have now reiterated their displeasure in a meeting with the Canadian Soccer Association.
In a statement, Bayern chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen said: “The conduct and actions of the Canadian association did not entirely fulfil the duty to protect Davies.
“Like all other national associations, Canada Soccer is obliged to prioritise the health of its players.
“FC Bayern will be financially compensated by FIFA for the injury to Davies as part of the FIFA Club Protection Programme. The amount of this compensation is yet to be determined.”
FC Bayern calls for more effective compliance with protection obligations by national associations following the injury of Alphonso Davies.
https://t.co/KlGisBg3VZ pic.twitter.com/z6bHrmHI0i
— FC Bayern (@FCBayernEN) June 4, 2025
The club added that Dreesen will “intensify contact with the national associations of contracted FC Bayern players in order to emphasise even more strongly the need to fulfil protection obligations in the event of injury.”
Bayern get their Club World Cup campaign under way against Auckland City on June 15, with Boca Juniors and Benfica their other group-stage opponents.
