Mr Swinney says he has been re-energised by what he terms a "sabbatical year" - saying that "the best thing that happened to me was standing down and having a year out of the front line".

In 2022, McNeill hosted Fairey at ETH Zurich as a visiting professor as part of his sabbatical where they worked with Laszakovits on this study.

Guardiola left Barcelona in 2012 and took a one-year sabbatical before joining Bayern, where he won three league titles and two German Cups in three seasons, achievements that served to increase his long-standing appeal to City.

Barrett, a former two-time World Player of the Year, spent the early part of this year playing for Japanese side Toyota Verblitz as part of a sabbatical agreed with New Zealand Rugby.

This will be Farrell's last window as Ireland coach before he takes his sabbatical to lead the British and Irish Lions in next summer's tour to Australia.