Research with kick! Protecting soccer players from injury

The World Cup tournament in South Africa is generating huge excitement among young soccer players across the globe. As they imitate their favourite World Cup stars, young players in community soccer leagues across Canada may push themselves to play harder, longer or more aggressively. So it's a good time to remind coaches, players and their parents about the importance of taking steps to prevent injuries.

But what's the best way to protect young soccer players from injury? A CIHR-funded study, led by Dr. Carolyn Emery, a physiotherapist in sports medicine and researcher at the University of Calgary, found that a soccer-specific training program reduced lower extremity injuries, such as ankle and knee sprains, by almost 40%. The study was recently published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

"We are very encouraged by the results of our study," said Dr. Emery. "When you consider the growing popularity of soccer in Canada and the high cost of treating injuries, we would save our health system a lot of money and save our kids much pain and discomfort if we prevented soccer injuries from happening." In 2007, over 700,000 youths were registered in the Canadian Soccer Association.

This was the first randomized controlled study of a youth soccer injury prevention program involving both male and female players. Dr. Emery and her colleagues studied 744 male and female soccer players, aged 13-18, from 60 teams in the Calgary area. The study was carried out during the teams' 2006-07 indoor season. The players were divided into training and control groups. Before practices and games, the training group performed a soccer-specific training program that involved a combination of stretching, strength, agility, jumping, and balance exercises. Players in the training group also performed balance exercises at home using a wobble board. The control group performed a traditional warm-up program that included stretching and aerobic exercise. Players in this group were also given stretching exercises to do at home.

What were the results? In the training group, 46 players sustained one injury, and two players sustained two injuries. In the control group, 63 players sustained one injury, five players sustained two injuries, and two players sustained three injuries. The overall injury rate for the training group was almost 40% lower than that for the control group. The most common injuries were sprained ankles and knees.

"Now that we've shown that a neuromuscular injury prevention program is effective, we would like to see coaches of youth soccer teams start using this type of program with their players," said Dr. Emery. "It's important, too, that we look at ways to identify players who may be at risk for injury, so we can develop individualized approaches for them."

By keeping soccer players from being sidelined with injuries, we also maximize the unique health benefits they get from participation in this fast-paced sport.

A recent study from Denmark showed that regular participation in soccer caused significant increases in bone mass and density, strengthened leg muscles and improved balance. This suggests soccer can help reduce the risk of falls and bone fractures. These benefits were not seen in a group of participants who, instead of soccer, took part in a running program. The study also found that 70-year-old men who have played soccer most of their lives on a recreational basis, had just as good balance and rapid muscle strength as untrained 30-year-olds.

"Soccer is a fun sport and a great form of exercise," said Dr. Jane Aubin, Scientific Director of CIHR's Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis. "Dr. Emery has shown that a sport specific injury prevention strategy is effective in protecting youth soccer players from injury. Not only do injuries cause pain and interfere with a player's participation, they also predispose a player to new injuries and contribute to the development of musculoskeletal problems, such as osteoarthritis, later in life. In this case, the preventive strategy that Dr. Emery has developed may help promote lifelong musculoskeletal health."