Soccer players jog or walk for much of a 90 minute-game, interspersed with regular bursts of full-out sprinting.
The sport makes for a rigorous workout, especially on the elite stage of the World Cup, which has quarterfinal matches starting Friday. Using various kinds of computerized tracking devices, researchers have found that midfielders in particular are covering a lot of ground — more than seven miles a game.
But soccer is not the most strenuous athletic activity, as measured by the average rate at which players burn calories. Boxing, squash, and swimming with a butterfly stroke all come out ahead.