Why do footballers wear vests under their tops?
We are sure that you've asked yourself why footballers sometimes wear sports-bra type things under their footballing shirts, so we're going to break it down for you.
These type of high performance garments have been in use for the last 4-5 seasons, and have slowly been incorporated into action across many European clubs. But at the start nobody really knew how useful they would be during training and matches so they were brought out of curiosity and interest.
Even though their use at the start was very sporadic, the clubs quickly saw their usefulness in delivering huge amounts of data that could be analyzed and used in a beneficial way. It meant that the vests were quickly incorporated into not only training exercises but also matches.
At the start many complained that the vest was uncomfortable and that it would effect their overall performance however after minor design adjustments, a large amount teams across the many top-flight leagues in Europe have incorporated them as another piece of kit. The device that has had various improvements over the years, now weighs just 66 grams.
Each vest is equipped with a small device that localizes each player though a Global Positioning System (GPS). Not only does the equipment monitor the heart rate of the player it also records: the distance a player has run, the intensity of the run, the speed, the amount of sprints and acceleration and also the amount of tackles a player makes in a game.
It means that players can focus on specific areas of their games and look into the things that they are doing well and not so well. Not only can it do this but it can also calculate if a player is at more or less risk of injury in both training sessions and matches.
Due to its amazing features, big clubs like Chelsea or Real Madrid have been using it for years. It has meant that managers such as Jose Mourinho have had better data to know when to rotate players to avoid injuries.