Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuettl has compared the habit of
spending excessive amounts of time playing video games to alcoholism and drug
addiction, saying footballers need protection.
The Austrian was speaking after an anonymous English Football League player
revealed lengthy gaming sessions were threatening to ruin his career.
Hasenhuettl
admitted to blocking hotel Wi-Fi during away trips while in charge of former
club RB Leipzig.
“I think it’s
something you have to force actively against and I will do this,” he said at
his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday’s Premier League trip to
Brighton.
“I did it in my
last club, we had also problems with players, they were playing until three
o’clock in the morning before a game.
“You have to be
active and to help protect them because it’s not a small problem because if you
are honest it’s the same as alcoholism or getting addicted to drugs.”
Hasenhuettl feels
it would be easier to tackle video-game addiction if it were seen as an illness
but does not believe any of his Saints squad currently have serious problems
with gaming.
“In my own squad,
at the moment no,” he said. “But you can be sure that I’m always in contact
with my captain or with a few players to speak about them.”
“As long as it’s
not officially for the government an illness, then we have to protect them in
our way,” he added.
“If it would be an
illness then it would be easy for the government to say the companies have to
give a block after three hours, for example, that they cannot play this game
any more.
“I will be active
always in this direction because I have to protect them and also outside the
pitch and that means for 24 hours I have to look at them and that’s what I will
do.”
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