The ability to have a 360° view of each athlete allows us to tailor efforts in every microcycle, raising the preparation standards of our national team toward the excellence that international football demands.
Pedro Ignacio ArbelaizuPhysical Trainer and Head of Performance, Asociacion Paraguaya de Futbol (APF)
The road to a FIFA World Cup is not built on talent alone. It is built in the thousands of micro-decisions made across every training cycle, decisions that, when made with precision, can be the difference between a squad that competes and one that conquers.
The Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol (APF) knows this better than most. And in their pursuit of returning Paraguay to football’s grandest stage, they have made a decisive move: partnering with Teamworks, the world’s leading athlete management and operations platform.
A Qualifying Campaign Forged Under Pressure
Paraguay’s road to the 2026 World Cup has been anything but straightforward. For much of the qualifying campaign, the Albirroja found themselves staring into the abyss, hovering dangerously close to elimination, their World Cup dream seemingly slipping away with each passing round. The pressure was immense, the margin for error non-existent.
The turning point came with a bold decision: a change in leadership, bringing in Gustavo Alfaro and his coaching staff. The arrival of a new technical direction injected fresh energy, tactical clarity, and renewed belief into the squad. What followed was a remarkable turnaround, Paraguay clawed their way back into contention, game by game, point by point, until they secured their place on football’s grandest stage. It was a story of resilience, pride, and the unbreakable spirit of Paraguayan football. But for those inside the federation, it was also a wake-up call: to compete at the highest level, every structural and operational advantage had to be maximized. There was no room for improvisation.
As part of this transition, Sergio Chiarelli, Head of Department and Physical Trainer for the senior national team, and Pedro Ignacio Arbelaiz, Physical Trainer and Head of Performance, joined La Albirroja.
The Stakes Have Never Been Higher
World Cup qualification in South America is one of the most competitive and demanding qualification processes in global football. For Paraguay, every training session, every recovery protocol, and every tactical decision in a condensed international window carries enormous weight.
Managing a national team setup presents unique challenges that club football simply doesn’t replicate. Players arrive from different leagues, different time zones, and different physical loads. The technical staff has days, not weeks, to integrate them, assess their condition, and build a cohesive unit ready to perform on the international stage. These compressed “microcycles” demand operational excellence.
That is precisely why the APF’s investment in Teamworks is not just a technological upgrade, it is a strategic commitment to the future of Paraguayan football.
Athens: Where the Partnership Came to Life
In March 2026, during the international football window, Teamworks made the partnership tangible in the most hands-on way possible. The Teamworks team traveled to Athens, Greece, where Paraguay were preparing for their international fixtures, to work directly alongside the APF’s technical and performance staff.
Over the course of those days in Athens, the staff were trained and onboarded onto Teamworks AMS, learning how to collect, centralize, and act on the data that would shape their World Cup preparation. The timing was deliberate and symbolic: with the tournament on the horizon, there was no better moment to ensure the entire organization was not just using the platform, but mastering itThe Teamworks team was alongside them every step of the way, ensuring every department, from physio staff to fitness coaches, was equipped and confident from day one.
The First in Latin America — Leading by Example
Paraguay’s adoption of Teamworks AMS carries significance beyond their own borders. The Albirroja are now the first national football team in Latin America to implement this technology at the highest level of international football, a distinction that reflects not just a forward-thinking federation, but a staff willing to set a new standard for the region.
In a continent where football passion runs deeper than almost anywhere else on earth, the APF is now setting the pace. While others may follow, Paraguay moves first, embracing the same infrastructure that powers Europe’s elite clubs and leveraging it in the unique, high-intensity context of international football. It is a statement of intent: that Paraguayan football is not just competing on the pitch, but evolving off it.
Paraguay’s Search for the Best Tech in Sport
Pedro’s commitment to excellence didn’t begin with the partnership, it began with a journey. Driven by a desire to understand how the world’s best football organizations operate, he traveled to England to visit some of the Premier League’s top clubs firsthand, immersing himself in the tools, systems, and methodologies that underpin elite performance at the highest level. The mission was clear: identify what was working at the top, and bring those learnings back to Paraguay.
One platform stood out. Across every elite dressing room he encountered, and in the hands of players themselves, Teamworks was the common thread. Trusted not only by Premier League clubs, but by top organisations worldwide, including Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Benfica, and more. These are teams that set the standard for performance infrastructure, and nothing is left to chance.
For Pedro and the APF, the choice was obvious. By adopting the same platform used by clubs competing at the sharp end of the Premier League, the Champions League, and the Copa Libertadores, Paraguay has sent a clear message: the Albirroja are no longer looking up at the world’s best, they are operating alongside them.
Centralizing the Chaos of International Football
One of the greatest operational challenges for any national team is the sheer volume of data generated during a training camp. Physical metrics, injury histories, GPS load data, medical reports, nutritional assessments, sleep tracking, the information is vast, fragmented, and time-sensitive.
With Teamworks AMS, the APF has transformed this complexity into clarity. Pedro, a key member of the technical and performance staff, describes the impact directly:
“We believe the implementation of Teamworks AMS is beginning to mark a before and after in the working methodology with the Paraguay Senior National Team. In the dynamic nature of each microcycle, where time is the most valuable resource, this tool has allowed us to be more effective in our operational and sporting management.
Previously, the volume of information collected daily represented a significant challenge. With Teamworks AMS, we have managed to centralize and process physical, medical, and technical metrics in real time. This allows us to analyze workload and individual performance with greater precision, transforming isolated data points into well-founded strategic decisions that protect the physical integrity of the player.
One of the most significant advances has been the improvement in internal communication. The platform acts as a shared ecosystem where the technical, medical, nutrition, and physical preparation teams converge. This cross-functional flow of information eliminates communication barriers, ensuring that all departments are aligned under the same objectives and can act as quickly as possible whenever necessary.
A 360° View of Every Athlete
What Pedro describes is more than software, it is a shift in culture and methodology. Teamworks AMS creates a unified ecosystem where every department, technical coaching, medical, nutrition, and physical preparation, works from the same real-time information.
The result is a 360° view of each player: their physical readiness, injury risk, recovery status, and performance trajectory, all in one place. For a national team operating under the pressure of World Cup qualification, this level of insight is invaluable.
No more siloed data. No more communication gaps between the doctor and the fitness coach. No more decisions made on incomplete pictures. Every staff member aligned, every intervention timely, every player protected.
Technology That Amplifies Human Judgment
“Ultimately, technology does not replace human judgment, it enhances it. By improving the efficiency of data collection and interpretation, we have achieved a superior level of integrated work. The ability to have a 360° view of each athlete allows us to tailor efforts in every microcycle, raising the preparation standards of our national team toward the excellence that international football demands.”
Perhaps the most important insight in Pedro’s testimony is this: technology does not replace human expertise, it empowers it.
The coaches, doctors, and performance analysts at the APF bring years of experience and intuition to their work. Teamworks AMS doesn’t override that judgment, it equips it. By automating data collection, streamlining communication, and surfacing actionable insights in real time, the platform frees the technical staff to focus on what they do best: making great decisions about football and the athletes who play it.
Building Toward the World Cup
The FIFA World Cup represents the pinnacle of international football. For Paraguay, returning to that stage is not a dream deferred, it is an active pursuit, backed by a federation that is investing in every lever available to give its players the best possible chance.
The partnership with Teamworks is one of the most significant of those investments. It places Paraguay in the company of elite programs that understand a fundamental truth of modern football: the margins are too small, and the competition too fierce, to leave any operational stone unturned.
From the first day of a training camp to the final whistle of a qualifier, Teamworks is there, in the data, in the communication, in the preparation. And for the Albirroja, that could make all the difference.
Teamworks is the global leader in athlete and organizational management technology, trusted by hundreds of elite sports organizations worldwide. Learn more at teamworks.com/ams
