Professional football participation over three seasons among 71 male players resulted in 84 recorded injuries, with an average of 16.6 missed days per injury.
Observational (n=71)
No
Lower limb injuries are highly prevalent in professional football, particularly during matches and specific months, highlighting the need for targeted prevention strategies.
Professional football players are exposed to high injury risk due to the physical demands of this sport. The purpose of this study was to characterize the injuries of a professional football team in the First Portuguese League over three consecutive sports seasons. Seventy-one male professional football players in the First Portuguese Football League were followed throughout the sports seasons of 2019/2020, 2020/2021, and 2021/2022. In total, 84 injuries were recorded. Each player missed an average of 16.6 days per injury. Lower limbs were massively affected by injuries across all three seasons, mainly with muscular injuries in the quadriceps and hamstrings and sprains in the tibiotarsal structure. Overall, the injury incidence was considerably higher in matches than in training. The two times of the season that proved most conducive to injuries were the months of July and January. Our results emphasize the importance of monitoring sports performance, including injury occurrence, and assisting in identifying risk factors in professional football. Designing individualized training programs and optimizing prevention and recovery protocols are crucial for maximizing this global process.
Martins et al. (Sun,) conducted a observational in Sports injuries (n=71). Professional football participation was evaluated on Injury occurrence and characteristics. Professional football participation over three seasons among 71 male players resulted in 84 recorded injuries, with an average of 16.6 missed days per injury.