Finally! As we progress in the fight against COVID-19, amateur sports are beginning to return across the country. One of the first to resume will be football (soccer). With a pre-season that has been interrupted and greatly shortened, it is important that this season is enjoyed safely by every player.

There are more than 240 million amateur, and 200,000 professional footballers currently playing the game. Football is a high intensity sport,  with relatively high incidence of injury compared to other sporting activities.

Current literature estimates that:

• Across the sport, an average of 17-24 injuries occur every 1000 playing hours, and that every male player generally suffers one injury each year of play.
• A majority of injuries are sustained in the last 15mins of each half, and the risk of injury is greater in the second half of play.
• Injuries occur on match day 4-6x more than at training

The most common injuries sustained in football (accounting for more than 50% of all injuries)  are:

• Ankle joint sprain
• Knee joint Sprain
• Hamstring muscle strain
• Groin muscle strain

There has been extensive research conducted in the area of injury prevention in football. Current research trends point towards preventative balance and neuro-muscular control programs as being highly effective in reducing the risk of injury during the season. Adequate rehabilitation of any existing conditions, no matter how small, is also vital to ensuring a player has a reduced risk of injury throughout the season.

With pre-season training getting into full swing before the anticipated July season start date, now is the perfect time to get yourself in shape for round one. At Pinnacle Spine & Sports, our therapists are able to assist you with not only injury management and rehabilitation, but also functional screening to identify potential areas of dysfunction before injuries occur.