In November & December, one of the most widely watched sports worldwide is football. Up to five billion viewers are anticipated to watch the Qatar 2022 World Cup on television. This represents almost 50% of the world’s population.
As a resident of Saudi Arabia, I was watching live FIFA World cup Football match. The victory of Argentina against Saudi Arabia on the 22nd of November was highly anticipating and kept us all on edge. While the statistics were in the favor of Argentina, Saudi team shocked us all with the historic win, breaking the 36 undefeated streak of Argentina which started in 2019.
Unfortunately, just mere seconds before the huge win, brutal collision between Al-Owais and defender Yasser Al-Shahrani caused Al-Shahrani to leave the field on a stretcher when Al-Owais leaped into the air to defend a shot and ended up striking the defender from his own team in the face with his left knee and in the abdomen with his right.This incident made me think about the risks faced by players and how they could be mitigated without causing major loss to any of the parties involved during such major tournaments. Let’s take a look at the largest event of the year and the sport of football from the standpoint of insurance enthusiasts, as all information about the game, including the lineup, schedule, and every minute detail, is constantly reported on the news.
So, what is Body Part Insurance?
In the event,if a body part is hurt, lost, disfigured, disabled, or damaged, body part insurance is meant to make up for lost revenue. For instance, the Nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar, insured her voice in the 1960s after a difficult period. The skill and precision of a sportsperson make all the difference, and this was also true for boxing sensation Vijender Singh. The athlete had to obtain insurance for those skilled hands given his degree of talent. Priyanka Chopra, who is well-known in both Bollywood and Hollywood, has won many hearts with her kind smile and beauty. She had her smile insured for a while nowas it enjoys entirely distinct popularity. If a person cannot utilize a body part to earn a living due to damage purchasing insurance for that body part is meant to replace any lost income. When you play at a high level, your risk of injury is always high. A lot of athletes therefore insure their body components. Because it is not offered by conventional insurance companies and is highly customized, body part insurance is not accessible to the public. But if you can afford it, there is no reason you can’t get it.
Some of the football players and the insurance covering their body parts is:-
Lionel Messi (Legs): Every time he kicks the ball with his left foot, everyone stops what they’re doing and turns to look. With a $900 million coverage on his left foot, Argentina’s captain possesses the most expensive body part insurance in sports. Messi will play once more to lead Argentina to the 2022 FIFA World Cup as he makes one last effort to capture the sport’s most coveted prize, which has eluded him throughout his career.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Legs): He is one of the best football players in the world owing to his relentless work ethic, dazzling dribbling, and incredible finishing. The likelihood of injury increases with these amazing skills. But for around $144 million in 2009, Real Madrid bought an insurance policy on their star’s legs.
Manuel Neuer (Hands): As a goalkeeper, his hands are his primary tool. And handling sporting circumstances requires strong hands if you want to be among the best in the world. In 2014, Manuel Neuer, a Bayern Munich goalkeeper who is regarded as one of the best in the world and a living legend, insured his hands for $3.5 million.
David Beckham (Legs):One of the most well-liked football players in the world is Beckham. The former star of Real Madrid and Manchester United first insured each of his legs for about €40 million when he was playing. Later, for about €190 million, he updated the insurance to cover his entire body. If he were to lose any sponsorship that depended on his appearance, this policy would provide financial protection for him.
Event Insurance
Such significant events are always protected by event insurance, which pays for any losses incurred because of event cancellation, delay, or relocation. FIFA underwrites insurance for the 2022 World Cup of amount 900 million USD. In the event of the FIFA World Cup 2022, the individual teams have supplementary insurance coverage for their players and delegation in case of accidents, illnesses, or other issues that may require rapid surgery or treatment.
Travel and Tourism Insurance
There will also be a lot of international travel insurance in addition to the event insurance and body part insurance for the athletes because the competition will draw spectators from all around the world. Traveling internationally will be risky due to the Covid epidemic and the fact that tourists from all over the world will be congregating in one location at the same time. All travelers must obtain FIFA World Cup travel insurance to safeguard themselves against financial risks in the event of a travel-related illness or accident.
Conclusion
The insurance business in Qatar, the World Cup 2022 host country, is thriving, with various forms of insurance being purchased for the smooth running of the tournament by the host as well as tourists and players. This makes us realize that insurance is a requirement even in the entertainment sector, and it operates in ways that are unknown to the general public, who are still oblivious of the insurance industry’s works and wonders.
