Injury incidence fell gradually over an 18-year period, a new study finds.
Injury Rates in Men’s Professional Soccer Trending Down
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In the study, “Injury rates decreased in men’s professional football: an 18-year prospective cohort study of almost 12,000 injuries sustained during 1.8 million hours of play,” published February 05, 2021 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers analyzed the 18-season time-trends in injury rates among male professional European football players.
The Union of European Football Association Elite Club Injury Study included 3,302 players, 49 teams, and 19 countries. The players were followed from 2000-2001 through 2018-2019.
Overall, 11,820 time-loss injuries were recorded during 1,784,281 hours of exposure. Over the 18-year study period, injury incidence fell 3% per season for both training injuries (95% CI 1% to 4% decrease; p = 0.002) and match injuries (95% CI 2% to 3% decrease; p < 0.001).
Ligament injury incidence decreased 5% per season during training (95% CI 3% to 7% decrease; p < 0.001) and 4% per season during match play (95% CI 3% to 6% decrease; p < 0.001), while the rate of muscle injuries remained the same.
In addition, the incidence of reinjuries decreased by 5% per season during both training (95% of CI 2% to 8% decrease; p = 0.001) and matches (95% CI 3% to 7% decrease; p < 0.001). While squad availability increased by 0.7% per season for training sessions (95% CI 0.5% to 0.8% increase; p < 0.001) and 0.2% per season for matches (95% CI 0.1% to 0.3% increase; p = 0.001).
“Over 18 years: injury incidence decreased in training and matches, reinjury rates decreased and player availability for training and match play increased,” the authors wrote.
They added that while the epidemiological study did not explore why there was a downward trend, they argue “that, over this 18-year period, injury prevention has become increasingly effective and football doctors and physiotherapists have become more efficient in identifying, intervening and contributing to a reduced number of injuries despite increasing demands.”
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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