The men’s football World Cup gets underway on 11 June, sparking a wave of office sweepstakes across the globe.

Football fever might be a good boost of morale for teams, especially if their team does well, but there is a concern that businesses could be negatively impacted by the event.

If sick days surge this summer, will your finances be left in critical condition?

How does the World Cup impact employees?

It was reported that the 2022 World Cup resulted in a sharp rise in sick days and this year it may be worse.

There are now 48 teams playing in the tournament, up from 32, meaning there will be 104 matches in total, up from 64.

Estimates vary on how many sick days will happen this year, with some claiming 650,000 more will be taken, while others believe the figure to be closer to 3.6 million.

Some sick days will likely be the result of people avoiding work to catch up on games they may have missed, while the impact of excessive alcohol consumption may also render a worker unable to show up.

As well as full sick days, employers should be bracing for late arrivals from staff, as well as a dip in performance if staff are tired from watching late matches.

It will be important to view the situation from an HR angle, ensuring that staff are meeting contracts where possible, a health and safety angle, limiting the danger posed by tiredness and hangovers, and a financial angle, factoring in the cost it may have on business.

What do businesses need to do to prepare for the World Cup?

There have been some who were concerned that the changes to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) may cause absences to increase.

This will be tested to its limits during the World Cup.

Employees can claim SSP from the first day of absence, meaning that they may not brave the office while hungover if their sofa still calls to them.

In the past, the inability to claim SSP may have caused people to power through, although that could have harmed productivity in other ways.

Payroll needs to brace for the impact of sudden absences, coupled with the new SSP requirements.

It is not too late for businesses to seek professional financial support to brace for the World Cup.

Our expert team can help take some of the stress away from managing the season by reviewing your finances.

We can help you budget for the anticipated impact of reduced staff numbers and help you handle the processing of your payroll.

Some businesses may stand to benefit from the World Cup, particularly pubs showing matches, so we can also support you in accommodating upturns in revenue as well as challenges.

While it is worth briefing employees on enjoying the tournament responsibly, it is worth building in provisions for if the festivities get too much for your team to handle.

Don’t let football fever make you sweat. Speak to our team today!