Athletic to add David Casamichana to performance department
Athletic Club is set to bring David Casamichana into its medical and performance structure, reinforcing the team that supports the first team ahead of the new season.
Athletic to Add David Casamichana to Performance Team
Athletic Club announced plans to strengthen its medical and performance departments as the new season approaches, with David Casamichana identified as a priority recruit. The club has signalled a clear intention to add new profiles beyond the recent coaching change, and Casamichana’s name has emerged as a key component of that strategy.
Club sources indicate the agreement with Casamichana was arranged several weeks ago, but Athletic has not yet issued an official confirmation or outlined whether his duties will place him alongside the first-team staff at pitchside. The exact reporting lines and day-to-day responsibilities remain under discussion as the club finalizes how the new appointment will integrate into the existing structure.
Casamichana’s Academic Credentials and Doctorate
David Casamichana holds a doctorate in Sports Science, a qualification that anchors his profile in both academic research and applied practice. His doctoral thesis, focused on the application of GPS technology to the assessment of training and competition in football, highlights a specialised expertise in monitoring and data-driven workload management.
Beyond his thesis research, Casamichana has collaborated as a lecturer at several recognised academic centres, combining university-level teaching with hands-on work in club environments. That blend of rigorous scientific training and instructional experience positions him to bridge the gap between research findings and practical implementation within a professional football setting.
Field Experience with Real Sociedad and Racing
Casamichana brings substantial on-field experience, having served as a fitness coach with Real Sociedad and previously with Racing Club, among other appointments. He spent eight seasons at Real Sociedad where he was a key member of the physical preparation team that worked closely with the coaching staff during a successful period for the club.
His tenure at Real Sociedad saw him operate under the technical leadership of Imanol and remain in physical preparation roles through subsequent staff changes until the arrival of Bruno Matarazzo, after which his professional relationship with the club concluded. That sustained exposure to top-level routines and match demands gives Casamichana practical insight into elite conditioning and season-long athlete management.
Fit within Iñigo San Millán’s Performance Department
Since 2023 Iñigo San Millán has led Athletic’s performance department, a role he initially combined with work outside the club before committing full-time to Athletic. The department under San Millán has pursued a modern, science-driven approach to conditioning and recovery, which appears consistent with the profile Casamichana offers.
How Casamichana will operate inside that framework is still being clarified, including whether he will work directly with the first-team coaching staff during training sessions and matches or occupy a more specialist, behind-the-scenes role. Athletic’s broader plan to diversify expertise in medical and performance units suggests Casamichana would augment existing resources rather than replace current personnel.
What Casamichana Brings: GPS, Research and Conditioning Practice
Casamichana’s doctoral research into GPS technology signals a capacity to advance Athletic’s use of tracking systems for load monitoring, tactical profiling and injury risk reduction. His experience with GPS-based evaluation equips him to convert large datasets into actionable training plans and recovery protocols tailored to individual players and the team as a whole.
In addition to data analysis skills, Casamichana’s background in physical preparation underlines familiarity with periodisation, strength and conditioning, and on-pitch session design. That combination of empirical methods and field-tested programming could enhance the club’s ability to manage workloads across congested fixtures, and to align conditioning objectives with the tactical demands set by the coaching staff.
Timing, Integration and Next Steps at Athletic
The arrival of David Casamichana is expected to be timed with the club’s pre-season preparations, enabling a period of integration before competitive fixtures begin. Athletic has not yet provided a timeline for any formal announcement, nor has it defined the operational scope of his role within matchday and training environments.
For Athletic, the signing would represent part of a broader retooling of backroom staff that the club outlined when presenting its short-term sporting project. The recruitment of specialists such as Casamichana follows a trend among top clubs to reinforce evidence-based performance systems and to pair academic expertise with practical conditioning know-how.
In the weeks ahead Athletic supporters can expect clarity on Casamichana’s official status and a fuller description of his mandate as the club finalises roles within the performance and medical units. The combination of his academic credentials, long-term experience at elite clubs and familiarity with GPS-driven monitoring offers Athletic a resource aimed at improving player availability and optimizing physical preparation across the season.
