Soccer Injury Statistics

Intro to soccer injury statistics
In this article I will present some interesting soccer injury statistics that you may find interesting. As you probably already know, soccer is increasingly becoming popular, with sports figures like David Beckham hogging the sports news and pop culture magazine. Understandably, the increase in popularity also came with a rapid increase in soccer related injuries.

*According to the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), in 1997, there was an estimated 148,913 reported cases of soccer injury in the United States alone. Of the cases, 0.2 % was between 0 and 4 years old. 48 % were between 5 and 14 years old; while 35.5 % were between 15 and 24 years old.

* This injury rate increased in a cumulative qualitative study for the period between 1990 and 2003, also based on NEISS data. Within the period, there was an estimated 1,597,528 soccer related injuries for those between 2 and 18 years old. The average age of those surveyed was 13.2 years old, with 58.6% males. However, during this period, there was also a significant increase in soccer-related injuries among girls.

* In the most recent NEISS survey, soccer continued to have one of the higher numbers of annual injuries. In the year, the estimated incidents of soccer-related injury were at a high 198,679. Most of these cases were involved those between 5 and 14 years, and 15 and 24 years old. There was an estimated 82,707 number of soccer-related injuries for the ages 5 and 14 years old. For the ages 15 to 24, the record is at 80,372.

* In the NEISS based 1990 to 2003 study, the most common injury was muscle sprain or strain, which was the diagnosis for 35.9% of the injuries. Contusion/ abrasion and fracture followed closely, with 24.1% and 23.2% respectively. Surprisingly, knee injuries were less common, at 11.4%. Ankle injuries were actually higher than knee injuries, with 18.2%.

* The likelihood of boys getting face, head and neck injuries was visibly higher than the girls’. The girls, on the other hand, were more likely to have ankle injuries and knee injuries, with records at 21.8% and 12.9% respectively.

* Even when heading the ball seemed to be the most dangerous game play, it actually just caused about 6.6 percent injuries. Concussions were more likely caused by player-to-player contact, rather than contact with the ball. Player-to-player concussions were at a record 70%, while ball contact concussions were only at 7%.

* According to total tallies, player-to-player contact was the leading cause of injury. It had caused over 40% of total soccer-related injuries.

* In the period of 2005 to 2007, girls accounted for almost half of the soccer injuries recorded. 90% of these were muscle strains and ligament sprains, commonly in the knee and ankle area.

Note
It is important to acquire adequate physical training in order to effectively prevent soccer-related injuries. As soccer player you should always warm up before your game or practice. You should also be in fit condition; and is not suffering from any pre-existing aches and pains. If you experience some pains, it is best to refrain from playing for a short period to let the muscles heal.