Sports Injuries of a Portuguese Professional Football Team during Three Consecutive Seasons

Francisco Martins, Cíntia França, Adilson Marques (), Beatriz Iglésias, Hugo Sarmento, Ricardo Henriques, Andreas Ihle, Helder Lopes, Rui T. Ornelas and Élvio Rúbio Gouveia
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Francisco Martins: Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Madeira, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
Cíntia França: Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Madeira, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
Adilson Marques: CIPER, Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon, 1499-002 Lisbon, Portugal
Beatriz Iglésias: Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon, 1499-002 Lisbon, Portugal
Hugo Sarmento: Research Unit for Sport and Physical Activity (CIDAF), Faculty of Sports Sciences and Physical Education, University of Coimbra, 2004-504 Coimbra, Portugal
Ricardo Henriques: Marítimo da Madeira—Futebol, SAD, 9020-208 Funchal, Portugal
Andreas Ihle: Department of Psychology, University of Geneva, 1205 Geneva, Switzerland
Helder Lopes: Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Madeira, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
Rui T. Ornelas: Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Madeira, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal
Élvio Rúbio Gouveia: Department of Physical Education and Sport, University of Madeira, 9020-105 Funchal, Portugal

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 19, 1-13

Abstract: 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.

Keywords: football injuries; risk factors; epidemiology; sports monitoring; injury prevention (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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