Key result
Among male professional football players with an ACL rupture, 98% returned to football after a mean of 226.7 days, though only 54.9% remained in the same league 3 years post-injury.
Why the study?
Ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament typically occur in professional football and epidemiological data about longitudinal injury development is needed.
Observational (n=63)
While 98% of professional football players return to competition after an ACL rupture, nearly half experience a decrease in playing level within 3 years.
May warrant caution counseling return-to-play expectations after ACL rupture; leaves open optimal strategies to sustain elite league level.
Ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) typically occur in professional football and epidemiological data about longitudinal injury development is needed. This practice‐driven investigation of media‐derived ACL data provides information about professional football over 10 years. Injury registration was based on “kicker” sports magazine information that have been recorded over one decade in a standardized manner. Only ACL ruptures in the first German football league were included when they could be verified by a second reliable source. Level of evidence: III. Fifty‐seven primary ACL ruptures were verified in the first German football league during the seasons 2007/2008 to 2016/2017. Among them, six re‐injuries were found. Mean age at the time of injury was 24.8 years (SD 3.8). 31% (n = 20) of ACL ruptures occurred at the beginning of the season in August or September (p = 0.02). Mean time of RTC after primary ACL ruptures was 226.7 days (SD: 93.5) and 245.6 days (SD: 45.4) after re‐injury. Although 62 (98%) players returned to football after injury and only one player immediately finished his career, 54.9% of the affected individuals played 3 years after the ACL rupture in the same league. ACL ruptures lead to longer absence than 7 months from football but does not give reason for immediate career‐ending. The decrease in playing level after 3 years illustrate the serious consequences of ACL ruptures in football. Media‐based injury reports may provide interesting information.
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Krutsch et al. (2019) conducted an observational in Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture (n=63). Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture was evaluated on Return to football. Among male professional football players with an ACL rupture, 98% returned to football after a mean of 226.7 days, though only 54.9% remained in the same league 3 years post-injury.
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