While many romantics claim that football is a universal language, the truth is that verbal communication is essential to performing at a high level on the pitch.
Often at the highest professional club level, this can be a challenge as many big clubs around the world bring in players from all over the globe, many of whom speak different languages.
In contrast, national team duty is often a haven for comfortable communication, where players from one geographical region or country come together to play international matches with players largely from their same area.
Some blended countries, however, still struggle with concept. The United States, for example, have a "melting pot" population demographics that can sometimes see Spanish-speaking players and English-speakers come together.
Few nations have it tougher than Belgium, however, where a number of languages are spoken throughout the nation, making communication difficult when they all converge. The Sporting News explains how Belgium players speak to one another while on international duty.
What language do Belgium international players speak?
According to the BBC, players in the Belgium national team have, in recent years, begun to favor speaking in English while on international duty.
While English is not one of the official languages of Belgium, this is reportedly done to avoid favoring one of Belgium's many national languages.
Because Belgium's language divide is largely geographical and therefore also cultural, selecting one language to speak would seem to marginalize those who are primarily speakers of other languages. Thus, according to this report, English was chosen to create a level playing field.
What language do they speak in Belgium?
Because of Belgium's location in the middle of many major European countries, there are a host of languages spoken throughout the nation.
There are three national languages of Belgium: Dutch, French, and German.
The vast majority of Belgians speak Dutch or French, with Dutch owning a majority, French second, and German a distant third. Dutch is spoken in the northern half of the country, French is spoken in the southern half, and there is a small pocket of German-speakers in a tiny section on the eastern edge near Germany.
A report published in 2006 by the largest French-speaking university in Brussels showed that most Belgians are multi-lingual, with 95% of Brussels residents surveyed claiming they can speak French, 59% claiming they can speak Dutch, and 41% claiming they can speak English.