Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Factors Associating with the Severity of Soccer Injury Among Men and Women Professional Teams

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Science in Sport and Exercise Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

To identify predictors of soccer injuries’ severity among professional soccer teams.

Methods

At the end of soccer season 2019, 152 professional soccer players (premier league and division-I teams) participated in this study. Players and teams’ medical staff provided demographics information, previous soccer injuries, current soccer injury profile, playing surface when they were injured. Further, they indicated the medical treatment and time-loss from soccer participation since injury (mild: 4–7, moderate: 8–28, severe: > 28 days). Player’s sex, previous soccer injuries, playing factors (team division and playing surfaces), and mechanism of injury were entered into multinomial regression model, with severe injury was reference group.

Results

Sixty-eight out of 152 players (44.73%) sustained soccer injuries [mild: 30.8% (n = 21), moderate: 33.8% (n = 23), severe: 35.4% (n = 24)]. Player’s sex (Men-vs.-Women: OR: 0.2, R2:9.9%), mechanism of injury (Contact-vs.-Non-contact: OR: 3.12, R2: 6.9%), playing surfaces (Synthetic-vs.-Natural grass: OR: 1.91, R2: 13.8%), and having previous injury (Yes-vs.-No: OR: 0.13, R2: 11.9%) were significant predictors of severity of soccer injuries (moderate vs. sever injuries).

Conclusion

Players’ sex, mechanism of injury, playing surfaces, and having previous soccer injury predicted the soccer injuries’ severity. Men players and those with previous soccer injury were less likely to have moderate verses sever injuries compared to women and players without previous injury. Players with contact injuries and who were injured on synthetic surface were more likely to have moderate versus severe injuries compared to players with non-contact injury and who were injured on natural grass. These factors may be taking in consideration to implement personalized rehabilitation program, reduce soccer injuries’ severity, and to develop tailored injury preventive strategies.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available due to regulations of the IRB at my institution but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

References

  1. van Beijsterveldt AM, Stubbe JH, Schmikli SL, van de Port IG, Backx FJ. Differences in injury risk and characteristics between Dutch amateur and professional soccer players. J Sci Med Sport. 2015;18(2):145–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2014.02.004.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Ani UK. The UEFA model in identification of types, severity and mechanism of injuries among professional footballers in the Nigerian Premier League. South Afr J Sport Med. 2016;27(1):12–5. https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3108/2015/v27i1a483.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Aoki H, Kohno T, Fujiya H, Kato H, Yatabe K, Morikawa T, Seki J. Incidence of injury among adolescent soccer players: A comparative study of artificial and natural grass turfs. Clin J Sport Med. 2010;20(1):1–7. https://doi.org/10.1097/JSM.0b013e3181c967cd.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Benito del Pozo L, Ayán Pérez C, Revuelta Benzanilla G, Maestro Fernández A, Fernández Villa T, Martín Sánchez V. Influence of the soccer players’ professional status on the frequency and severity of injuries: A comparative pilot study. Apunt Med l’Esport. 2014;49(181):20–4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apunts.2013.05.002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Bizzini M, Junge A, Dvorak J. Implementation of the FIFA 11+ football warm up program: How to approach and convince the Football associations to invest in prevention. Br J Sports Med. 2013;47(12):803–6. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2012-092124.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Brophy RH, Stepan JG, Silvers HJ, Mandelbaum BR. Defending puts the anterior cruciate ligament at risk during soccer: a gender-based analysis. Sports Health. 2015;7(3):244–9. https://doi.org/10.1177/1941738114535184.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  7. Del Coso J, Herrero H, Salinero JJ. Injuries in Spanish female soccer players. J Sport Heal Sci. 2018;7(2):183–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2016.09.002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Damore DT, Metzl JD, Ramundo M, Pan S, Van Amerongen R. Patterns in childhood sports injury. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2003;19(2):65–7. https://doi.org/10.1097/00006565-200304000-00001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Dennis J, Dawson B, Heasman J, Rogalski B, Robey E. Sleep patterns and injury occurrence in elite Australian footballers. J Sci Med Sport. 2016;19(2):113–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2015.02.003.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Ekstrand J, Gillquist J. The frequency of muscle tightness and injuries in soccer players. Am J Sports Med. 1982;10(2):75–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/036354658201000202.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Ekstrand J, Gillquist J. Soccer injuries and their mechanisms: a prospective study. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1983;15(3):267–70. https://doi.org/10.1249/00005768-198315030-00014.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Ekstrand J, Nigg BM. Surface-related Injuries in soccer. Sport Med. 1989;8(1):56–62. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-198908010-00006.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Ekstrand J, Timpka T, Hägglund M. Risk of injury in elite football played on artificial turf versus natural grass: a prospective two-cohort study. Br J Sports Med. 2006;40(12):975–80. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2006.027623.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  14. Ekstrand J, Hägglund M, Waldén M. Injury incidence and injury patterns in professional football: The UEFA injury study. Br J Sports Med. 2011;45(7):553–8. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2009.060582.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Ekstrand J, Hägglund M, Kristenson K, Magnusson H, Waldén M. Fewer ligament injuries but no preventive effect on muscle injuries and severe injuries: an 11-year follow-up of the UEFA Champions League injury study. Br J Sports Med. 2013;47(12):732–7. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2013-092394.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Fernandez PG, Perez JG, Lopez MR, Lopez ESR, Perez JPH. Injury rate in professional soccer players within the community of Madrid: a comparative, epidemiological cohort study among the first, second and second B divisions. J Physiother Phys Rehabil. 2017;2:152. https://doi.org/10.4172/2573-0312.1000152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Fuller CW, Ekstrand J, Junge A, Andersen TE, Bahr R, Dvorak J, Hägglund M, McCrory P, Meeuwisse WH. Consensus statement on injury definitions and data collection procedures in studies of football (soccer) injuries. Clin J Sport Med. 2006;40(3):193–201. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2005.025270.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Le Gall F, Carling C, Reilly T. Biological maturity and injury in elite youth football. Scand J Med Sci Sport. 2007;17(5):564–72. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2006.00594.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Giza E, Micheli LJ. Soccer injuries. Med Sport Sci. 2005;49:140–169. https://doi.org/10.1159/000085395.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Giza E, Mithöfer K, Farrell L, Zarins B, Gill T. Injuries in women’s professional soccer. Br J Sports Med. 2005;39(4):212–6. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2004.011973.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  21. Gouttebarge V, Aoki H, Ekstrand J, Verhagen EALM, Kerkhoffs GMMJ. Are severe musculoskeletal injuries associated with symptoms of common mental disorders among male European professional footballers? Knee Surg Sport Traumatol Arthrosc. 2016;24(12):3934–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-015-3729-y.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Hägglund M, Waldén M, Ekstrand J. Previous injury as a risk factor for injury in elite football: a prospective study over two consecutive seasons. Br J Sports Med. 2006;40(9):767–72. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2006.026609.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  23. Hägglund M, Waldén M, Ekstrand J. Injuries among male and female elite football players. Scand J Med Sci Sport. 2009;19(6):819–27. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2008.00861.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Hägglund M, Waldén M, Ekstrand J. Risk factors for lower extremity muscle injury in professional soccer: the UEFA injury study. Am J Sports Med. 2013;41(2):327–35. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546512470634.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Hawkins RD, Fuller CW. A prospective epidemiological study of injuries in four English professional football clubs. Br J Sports Med. 1999;33(3):196–203. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.33.3.196.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  26. Hershman EB, Anderson R, Bergfeld JA, Bradley JP, Coughlin MJ, Johnson RJ, Spindler KP, Wojtys E, Powell JW, National Football League Injury and Safety Panel. An analysis of specific lower extremity injury rates on grass and FieldTurf playing surfaces in National Football League Games: 2000–2009 seasons. Am J Sports Med. 2012;40(10):2200–5. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546512458888.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Jacobson I, Tegner Y. Injuries among Swedish female elite football players: a prospective population study. Scand J Med Sci Sport. 2007;17(1):84–91. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2006.00524.x.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Roos KG, Wasserman EB, Dalton SL, Gray A, Djoko A, Dompier TP, Kerr ZY. Epidemiology of 3825 injuries sustained in six seasons of National Collegiate Athletic Association men's and women's soccer (2009/2010–2014/2015). Br J Sports Med. 2017;51(13):1029–34. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2015-095718.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Kiliç, Aoki H, Goedhart E, Kerkhoffs GMMJ, Kuijer PPFM, Waldén M, Gouttebarge V. Severe musculoskeletal time-loss injuries and symptoms of common mental disorders in professional soccer: a longitudinal analysis of 12-month follow-up data. Knee Surg Sport Traumatol Arthrosc. 2018;26(3):946–54. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-017-4644-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Larruskain J, Lekue JA, Diaz N, Odriozola A, Gil SM. A comparison of injuries in elite male and female football players: A five-season prospective study. Scand J Med Sci Sport. 2018;28(1):237–45. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.12860.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Merron R, Selfe J, Swire R, Rolf CG. Injuries among professional soccer players of different age groups: a prospective four-year study in an English Premier League Football Club. Int Sport J. 2006;7(4):266–76. https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:68663300.

  32. Meyers MC. Incidence, mechanisms, and severity of game-related college football injuries on FieldTurf versus natural grass: a 3-year prospective study. Am J Sport Med. 2010;38(4):687–97. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546509352464.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Meyers MC. Incidence, mechanisms, and severity of match-related collegiate men’s soccer injuries on FieldTurf and natural grass surfaces. Am J Sports Med. 2017;45(3):708–18. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546516671715.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Meyers MC, Barnhill BS. Incidence, causes, and severity of high school football injuries on FieldTurf versus natural grass: a 5-year prospective study. Am J Sports Med. 2004;32(7):1626–38. https://doi.org/10.1177/0363546504266978.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. NCAA. Men’s soccer injuries. Natl Coll Athl Assoc [Internet]. 2009. https://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/NCAA_M_Soccer_Injuries_WEB.pdf. Accessed 15 Dec 2022.

  36. NCAA Research. Estimated probability of competing in college athletics. 2016. https://www.ncaa.org/sports/2015/3/2/estimated-probability-of-competing-in-college-athletics.aspx. Accessed 20 Dec 2022.

  37. Nielsen AB, Yde J. Epidemiology and traumatology of injuries in soccer. Am J Sports Med. 1989;17(6):803–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/036354658901700614.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Onaka GM, Gaspar-Jr JJ, Graças D das, Barbosa FSS, Martinez PF, Oliveira-Junior SA de. Sports injuries in soccer according to tactical position: a retrospective survey. Fisioter em Mov. 2017;30(1):249–57. https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-5918.030.S01.AO24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Öztürk S, Kiliç D. What is the economic burden of sports injuries? Eklem Hast ve Cerrahisi. 2013;24(2):108–11. https://doi.org/10.5606/ehc.2013.24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Price RJ, Hawkins RD, Hulse MA, Hodson A. The football association medical research programme: an audit of injuries in academy youth football. Br J Sports Med. 2004;38(4):466–71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2003.005165.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  41. Reis GF, Santos TR, Lasmar RC, Oliveira Júnior O, Lopes RF, Fonseca ST. Sports injuries profile of a first division Brazilian soccer team: a descriptive cohort study. Brazilian J Phys Ther. 2015;19(5):390–7. https://doi.org/10.1590/bjpt-rbf.2014.0120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Rumpf MC, Cronin J. Injury incidence, body site, and severity in soccer players aged 6–18 years: implications for injury prevention. Strength Cond J. 2012;34:20–31. https://doi.org/10.1519/SSC.0b013e31821a9833.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Selven T, Tjønna AE. Incidence of soccer injuries among 15- to 19-year-old boys in Norwegian National Teams. J Athl Enhanc. 2015;4:5. https://doi.org/10.4172/2324-9080.1000210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Sigward SM, Pollard CD, Powers CM. The influence of sex and maturation on landing biomechanics: implications for anterior cruciate ligament injury. Scand J Med Sci Sport. 2012;22(4):502–9. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2010.01254.x.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. Soligard T, Grindem H, Bahr R, Andersen TE. Are skilled players at greater risk of injury in female youth football? Br J Sports Med. 2010;44(15):1118–23. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2010.075093.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Tegnander A, Olsen OE, Moholdt TT, Engebretsen L, Bahr R. Injuries in Norwegian female elite soccer: a prospective one-season cohort study. Knee Surg Sport Traumatol Arthrosc. 2008;16(2):194–8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-007-0403-z.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Hewett TE, Shultz SJ, Griffie LY. Understanding and preventing noncontact ACL injuries. Champagne, IL: Human Kinetics Publishers; 2007. pp. 163–71.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  48. Timpka T, Risto O, Björmsjö M. Boys soccer league injuries: a community-based study of time-loss from sports participation and long-term sequelae. Eur J Public Health. 2008;18(1):19–24. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckm050.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  49. Waldén M, Hägglund M, Ekstrand J. The epidemiology of groin injury in senior football: a systematic review of prospective studies. Br J Sports Med. 2015;49(12):792–7. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2015-094705.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Waldén M, Hägglund M, Ekstrand J. UEFA Champions League study: a prospective study of injuries in professional football during the 2001–2002 season. Br J Sports Med. 2005;39(8):542–6. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2004.014571.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  51. Waldén M, Hägglund M, Ekstrand J. High risk of new knee injury in elite footballers with previous anterior cruciate ligament injury. Br J Sports Med. 2006;40(2):158–62. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2005.021055.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  52. Blackburn JT, Padua DA. Influence of trunk flexion on hip and knee joint kinematics during a controlled drop landing. Clin Biomech (Bristol, Avon). 2008;23(3):313–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinbiomech.2007.10.003.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  53. Williams S, Hume PA, Kara S. A review of football injuries on third and fourth generation artificial turfs compared with natural turf. Sport Med. 2011;41(11):903–23. https://doi.org/10.2165/11593190-000000000-00000.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Williams S, Trewartha G, Kemp S, Stokes K. A meta-analysis of injuries in senior men’s professional rugby union. Sport Med. 2013;43(10):1043–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-013-0078-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Jordan University of Science and Technology for funding this project and the Jordan Olympic Committee and Jordan Football Association for their effort facilitating the conduction of this project.

Funding

This work was supported by the Jordan University of Science and Technology under Grant [number 2018/363].

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Physical Therapy, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST), P.O. Box 3030, Irbid, 22110, Jordan

    Zakariya H. Nawasreh, Mohammad A. Yabroudi, Wesam A. Debes & Ahmad A. Darwish

  2. Department of Special Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 3030, Irbid, 22110, Jordan

    Khaldoon M. Bashaireh

  3. Doctoral School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pécs, Vörösmarty u. 4., Pécs, 7624, Hungary

    Wesam A. Debes

  4. Medical Faculty, Yarmouk University, Irbid, 21163, Jordan

    Adel S. Alsharei

Authors
  1. Zakariya H. Nawasreh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mohammad A. Yabroudi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Wesam A. Debes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ahmad A. Darwish
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Adel S. Alsharei
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Khaldoon M. Bashaireh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

ZHN, MY, WD, AD KB, and AS conceived the conceptualization of this study. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by AD, WD, and ZHN. ZHN and MY performed the analysis and interpreting the results. ZHN, WD, AD and MY wrote the initial draft and helped with interpreting the results. KB and AS helped with interpreting the results and proofreading the manuscript. All authors contributed to the rebuttal and revised the final draft of this manuscript. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zakariya H. Nawasreh.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors certify that there is no conflict of interest with any financial organization regarding the material discussed in the manuscript. The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Ethical Approval

The study protocol was approved by the Institutional Human Subjects Review Board of Jordan University of Science and Technology and King Abdullah University Hospital, Irbid, Jordan (55/118/2018).

Consent to Participate

All soccer players signed an informed consent form before participating in the study. For participants that were between the 16 and 18 years of age, permission from the child's parent or legal guardian were sought and documented on the informed consent form.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Nawasreh, Z.H., Yabroudi, M.A., Debes, W.A. et al. Factors Associating with the Severity of Soccer Injury Among Men and Women Professional Teams. J. of SCI. IN SPORT AND EXERCISE (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42978-023-00233-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42978-023-00233-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation