Objectives: To determine the best preparation for the soccer World Cup. 

Topics: The players should recover in the first period after their club season. It is, however, important that they try to maintain their endurance capacity by frequently performing aerobic, low-intensity exercise in order to be prepared for the re-building period which starts about five weeks before the World Cup. During the re-building period, mainly aerobic high-intensity exercise, but also various types of anaerobic training, should be performed. When the tournament has started, the amount of fitness training can be reduced for the players who regularly play on the team, but frequent sessions of aerobic high-intensity training are recommended. The training plan should take into account the needs of each individual player. Players who do not regularly play in the team should follow an extensive fitness training program throughout all periods.