Injuries in men's amateur soccer

We often say that comparisons are odious, but if we compare professional and amateur soccer, we see that the differences go beyond matches in large stadiums or million-dollar salaries. Despite the fact that amateur players also get injured, there are few sports trauma studies on injuries in amateur soccer players.

Studies on injuries in amateur soccer
The incidence of injuries in amateur male soccer players is estimated at between 2.72 and 36.9 injuries per 1,000 hours of exposure. Most of these injuries are acute, indirect events (non-contact), most frequently injuring muscles, tendons, and ligaments.

The most common injury mechanisms are high-speed running and changes of direction. The most commonly affected anatomical location is the lower extremities, specifically the posterior thigh (up to 91% according to the study reviewed, primarily the hamstring muscles), knee, ankle, and hip/groin.

This high injury rate described in various epidemiological studies on sports trauma is accompanied by a particularly high recurrence or relapse rate, ranging from 14% to 33%, primarily in muscle and ankle ligament injuries and tendinopathies of the lower extremity.

This high recurrence rate highlights the special attention that should be paid to the first injury. Recognizing that the resources available in amateur football are limited compared to professional football, the implementation of strategies to reduce these injury recurrences is essential.

Various publications on sports traumatology highlight certain aspects more specific to amateur football regarding the timing of injury. A higher incidence of injuries is common at the end of training sessions and in the second half of matches. There are a higher number of injuries in competition compared to training sessions (up to 7 times more, according to the study), and at certain times of the season, with peak injury incidence in the months of October and February.

Injury Prevention in Amateur Football
All these data indicate that appropriate prevention strategies and training load management are likely required, focusing on the preseason and the return from the Christmas break, moments prior to peak injury incidence.

Regarding the increased injury incidence in the final periods of competition and training, this may be attributed to fatigue and reflects the need for improved physical conditioning or better load management in training.

On the other hand, the players' youth and lack of commitment to participating in specific injury prevention exercises in addition to their weekly training program can be a handicap, which can be counteracted by incorporating injury prevention strategies into their daily training routines.