Most frequent injuries in football: what they are and how to prevent them

1. Common types of injuries in football
2. Recovery time from a soccer injury
3. How to prevent football injuries
4. Biomechanical socks for soccer players

Football is the most popular team sport in the world and also among those with the highest number of injuries. Some studies state that 75-85% of football players are injured at least once a season. The incidence, indicated in IFR (Injury Frequency Rate), amounts to about 8.5 injuries in professionals every 1000 hours of sporting activity, with variations starting from 4.8 in under 18s and reaching 16.9 in amateur footballers . The triggering factors are various: in addition to the frequent episodes of contrast, typical in this sport, football is a sport that involves abrupt movements and sudden jerks, training levels can also be very different and pitches have variable levels of difficulty.

As a result, there are often cases of contusion, sprain, fractures and various injuries to the musculoskeletal system: for example, meniscus rupture and cruciate ligament injury are very common. Injuries force the athlete to stop for some time, sometimes for entire seasons, up to forcing him to retire early, and there is no distinction between amateurs and Serie A players. Good prevention is essential in order not to jeopardize continuity of their performance.

Common types of injuries in football

To classify injuries in football, we must first consider the nature of the trauma, which can be direct or indirect. In injuries from direct trauma, mostly intended to heal quickly, without leaving aftermath, the cause is a force acting directly from the outside. Muscle injuries from indirect trauma instead, they presuppose the action of intrinsic, more complex harmful forces, and, although most players return to the field in 1-3 months, the risk of re-injury is very high. Let's explore the most common types of muscle injuries.

Muscle contraction

It manifests itself with muscle pain that almost always arises after sporting activity (after a few hours or the day after), attributable to a state of muscle fatigue: there are no obvious anatomical lesions.

Muscle strain

The strain is the consequence of an acute painful episode, which arose during sporting activity, which forces one to interrupt the activity. There are no macroscopic tears of the muscle fibers, but the muscle swells and the pain persists for a long time.

Muscle tear

Acute and violent pain that appears during sporting activity, attributable to the laceration of a variable number of muscle fibers. It is always accompanied by a more or less evident blood extravasation. It can be I, II or III degree, depending on the severity.

Recovery time from a soccer injury

Healing times for minor muscle injuries usually take a few weeks, from 1 to 4. More serious injuries, on the other hand, can take 9-12 months to heal completely. Recovery, in the early stages, usually follows a similar path:

• In the acute phase (first 3-4 days after the injury) the injured muscle must be kept in rest or at least protected from excessive loads;
• The ice, or the cryotherapy in general, it can be used for its vascular and pain-reducing effect;
• There compression limits the spread of edema due to extravasation of fluids from injured vessels within the site of injury;
• The lift of the injured area reduces local pressure and bleeding, promotes drainage of the inflammatory exudate and reduces edema and related complications;
• L’physical exercise it is central in the sub-acute phase: early rehabilitation helps the recovery of muscle tone, favoring a correct healing process and avoiding the establishment of scar tissue;
• L’sport activity it must be resumed gradually and in a controlled manner, focusing on the recovery of strength, mobility and athletic movement through different exercise proposals.

How to prevent football injuries

Prevention is the best cure! Some experts have compiled a decalogue to "re-oxygenate and re-vascularize the muscles" after a period of discontinuation from sporting activity, which functions as a concentration of practical advice for effective prevention of football injuries.

• Submit to a careful physical assessment by an athletic trainer;
• Follow a protocol targeted exercises to the lengthening of the lower limbs;
• Protect muscles and tendons by wearing suitable footwear and technical socks;
• Do stretching before and after workouts for the elasticity of muscle districts;
• Hydrate yourself before, during and after matches for optimal athletic performance;
• Prefer exercises to improve the motor control and muscle capacity;
• Submit to decontracting massages to relax the muscles;
• Avoiding damage from functional overload: balance workloads;
• Check the field conditions for the absence of cracks, debris and wet;
• Exploit the laser therapy (Theal Therapy) to speed up recovery.

Biomechanical socks for soccer players

Playing soccer requires coordination, muscle power and endurance. AXIST by FLOKY is the first biomechanical sock studied and designed for football. Thanks to biomechanical applications and localized compression work, it guarantees foot and shin guard stability, speeds up recovery, prevents trauma and injuries and assists movement during sudden changes of direction. The compression optimizes venous return and facilitates the physiological movement of the foot while running. From a comparison with classic terry technical soccer socks, AXIST socks stood out for their performance:

• +4.7% straight-line speed;
• +4.2% motor control;
• -12.8% muscle engagement;
• Greater stability, motor control and oxygenation of the muscle, thanks to the innovative screen-printing applications (Tape System).