Understanding the most common injuries in beach soccer and their risk factors is essential for ensuring player safety. We aimed to describe the injury patterns and identify factors associated with the risk of injury in men's beach soccer. We prospectively recorded injuries reported by players at an on-site aid station during the Japanese National Beach Soccer Championships between 2013 and 2023 (9 tournaments). Match exposure was recorded through video review. We described the injury types and sites, and the factors associated with the injury risk using generalized estimating equations in negative binomial models adjusted for confounders. In total, 796 participants played for 1360.5 player-hours. We observed 144 injuries, with an incidence rate of 106.0/1000 player-hours (95% CI: 89.9-125.0), representing 153 diagnoses. The most frequent injury sites were as follows: foot ( = 40), thigh ( = 24), and lower leg ( = 21). The most frequent injury type was contusion ( = 75). Of the 83 injuries caused by a contact with another player, 24 resulted in a foul. There were 35 injuries associated with time loss (incidence rate 25.7/1000 player-hours, 95% CI: 18.6-35.7), mainly in the foot (n=10) and the thigh (n=8). The risk of injury was lower for goalkeepers and higher in players with time-loss injuries in the past year, with trends towards higher risk for players with lower BMI and history of severe injuries. Lower limb contusions are the predominant injuries in men's beach soccer. Our findings raise the question of protective foot gear to reduce foot contusions and fractures and can inform playing schedules of players at risk.

This prospective cohort study aimed to longitudinally assess the brain injury biomarker plasma neurofilament light (NfL) and its relationship with football heading exposure in female football players during a competitive season. Forty-nine collegiate female football players were recruited to participate in the study, 29 voluntarily consented and enrolled. Blood samples were collected every 3-4 weeks during season: preseason, midseason 1, 2, and postseason. Heading exposure was estimated every two weeks via HeadCount questionnaire. Linear mixed models for repeated measures were used to determine differences in plasma NfL during the season. Spearman's rank correlation analysis determined the relationship between NfL changes and heading exposure. For analysis, participants were excluded if unable to participate in ≥ 80% of team activities or experienced a concussion during the season; thus, six were excluded resulting in 23 participants' data analyzed. NfL at mid- and postseason did not differ from preseason (mid1:  = 0.57; mid2:  = 0.88; postseason:  = 0.07). Changes in NfL from preseason were unrelated to gameplay heading exposure at any time points and cumulative exposure at midseason 1, 2. Changes in NfL and cumulative heading exposure from pre- to postseason were positively correlated ( = 0.434,  = 0.039), with lower exposures associated with reductions in NfL and higher exposures showing minimal to no elevations. In conclusion, plasma NfL did not elevate in collegiate female football players during a competitive season of heading exposure. However, whether these findings reflect no subtle brain injury or NfL's insensitivity in detecting said injury in young female players remains unclear.

Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between playing time and well-being in Danish under-17 elite level football players.

This audit assessed the representation of elite female footballers in performance and injury research and evaluated the consideration of ovarian hormones within this research. A standardised audit of performance and injury research in elite football was conducted, systematically reviewing studies to quantify the inclusion of elite female players and the consideration of ovarian hormone profiles. A total of 722 studies were included. Female-only research has increased in recent years, with 47% ( = 44) of all female-only studies published since 2022. However, male-only studies dominate, comprising 83% ( = 600) of all studies. Female-only studies accounted for 13% of all research, with women representing 7% of all participants. Only one study investigated injury characteristics and recovery in exclusively female players. Of the 104 studies including female players, 96% did not provide sufficient information to define menstrual status. Only four studies offered enough detail to be evaluated using the tiering system by Smith etal. (2022b): 2.5 were ranked ungraded (menstrual status defined but with insufficient methodological control), 1.5 ranked bronze tier (some methodological control). No study was classified as gold tier, which indicates best practice. Our findings show elite female footballers remain significantly underrepresented, particularly in studies examining injury characteristics and recovery, with minimal consideration of ovarian hormones. To advance the field and improve methodological quality, future research must use robust objective measures (e.g. ovulation testing or progesterone monitoring) to determine ovarian hormone profiles and ensure sex-balanced representation across all research themes to accelerate the development of the women's game.

Female athletes have long been under-represented in sports medicine research, and data on the association of surgical procedures on elite athletic careers remain limited. This study estimated career longevity and satisfaction among elite retired women football players. Data were collected via an anonymous online survey from a previously published cohort of 560 retired elite female football athletes, who provided information on playing history, surgical history, and assessments of long-term joint function, physical activity, and general health. Linear and ordinal regression analyses were used to evaluate factors associated with career longevity, career satisfaction, and post-career satisfaction. Higher competition level was associated with longer career duration (β = 2.57,  < 0.001), while more years since retirement was linked to shorter careers (β = -0.23,  = 0.018). Playing as a defender (OR: 1.71,  = 0.035), more years since retirement (OR: 1.03,  = 0.016), and better mental (OR: 1.05,  < 0.001) and physical health (OR: 1.04,  = 0.034) were associated with greater career satisfaction. Post-career satisfaction was higher with more years since retirement (OR: 1.05,  < 0.001) and better mental health (OR: 1.14,  < 0.001), while anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction during the career was linked to lower post-career satisfaction (OR: 0.50,  = 0.034). Retired elite women football players with more years since retirement and better mental health reported greater career and post-career satisfaction. Those with a history of ACL reconstruction reported lower post-career satisfaction, potentially due to ongoing health issues.

The aim of this study was to explore female football (soccer) players' perspectives of heading the ball, and perceived header injury risk. A qualitative approach was undertaken using reflexive thematic analysis. Focus groups and individual interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview guide. Participants also completed a survey containing a validated concussion knowledge and attitudes questionnaire. Participants were recruited throughout New Zealand and focus groups/interviews were completed via Zoom. Otter.ai was used to assist in transcription and NVivo was used for coding and initial theme development. Nineteen female football players were included across six focus groups and three individual interviews. Three main themes were generated. Firstly, explored players' views around the importance of heading for the game and perceived injury risks. Secondly, described players' avoidance of heading the ball rather than training the skill due to potential injury risk and/or concern around performing repeated headers. Finally, explored how players perceived the experience of a concussion to have influenced their headers, factors influencing their concussion attitudes and potential return to heading guidelines and injury prevention tools. Female footballers reported actively avoiding repetitive header training due to their perceived injury risk and experiencing symptoms. While female players value the importance of headers for the game of football, there is also some concern around the safety and potential injury risk, especially in those with a history of concussion.

Advancements in recent years have enabled the generation of tracking data from broadcast videos. However, regardless of the quality of these systems, off-screen actions cannot be monitored since the athletes are not visible. The present study investigates the influence of player visibility in soccer broadcast videos on typical data analysis routines in soccer. To this end, we emulate broadcast player tracking data from two video sources (scouting feed, SF; broadcast television, TV) and compare the quality of physical and tactical performance metrics to the official player tracking data (GT) in two experiments. Experiment 1 analyzes the impact of player visibility on total distance and high-speed distance covered, while experiment 2 investigates its effect on tactical formation detection through template matching. The results show that overall 97% but less than 50% of player activity is visible in SF and TV, respectively. Experiment 1 indicates that visibility in SF and TV significantly affects the assessment of physical match intensity. Experiment 2 shows that SF visibility has no meaningful effect on formation recognition accuracy, while limited visibility in TV results in minor accuracy reductions. The findings suggest that while some tactical analysis can be reliably conducted using broadcast tracking data, physical metrics may be more susceptible to inaccuracies caused by missing data. Although data quality may be improved through interpolation of missing player trajectories, researchers and practitioners rely on transparency from data providers regarding their methods to assess the sufficiency of their data to the task at hand.

This study aimed to assess the agreement between daily self-reported and actigraphy-derived sleep duration in high-level male youth soccer players over a 35-day period. Secondary analyses examined the agreement between daily self-reported sleep duration and objective time in bed (TIB), as well as the agreement between sleep questionnaire responses and averaged actigraphy data. Forty-eight players wore actigraphy devices nightly and completed daily sleep diaries for 35 consecutive days. After the monitoring period, players completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Agreement was assessed using Bland - Altman analysis. Results showed a mean bias of - 60 min between self-reported and objective sleep duration, with wide limits of agreement (-02:09 to +00:15 h), indicating poor agreement. Similar results were observed when comparing self-reported sleep to objective TIB. PSQI responses overestimated average sleep duration for the same time period by 69 min (LoA: -17 to +154 min). Overall, self-reported sleep duration consistently overestimated sleep duration and failed to meet the predefined threshold for acceptable agreement of 30 min. These findings suggest that daily self-report and questionnaire-based sleep estimates may not be reliable proxies for objective sleep data in youth soccer athletes. While subjective methods may still hold practical utility for routine screening, objective tools should be prioritized for sleep monitoring.

The objective of this study was to describe the experiences of clinicians working within the top 50 FIFA ranked senior men's and women's international football teams regarding (i) feasible best practice in delivering medical care and (ii) the related challenges. A qualitative study was conducted by means of semi-structured interviews. Participants were clinicians from seven men's and five women's FIFA top-50 ranked international football teams, including nine doctors and three physiotherapists. Data analysis applied thematic analysis utilising a pragmatic realist stance. The results of this study are represented by five main themes: (1) communication and relationships, (2) governance, (3) navigating risk-taking, (4) delivering medical care abroad, and (5) resource impact. Concepts relating to clinician-perceived best practice included building relationships with technical staff members, effective communication, and relationships with club medical teams, adherence to practices such as medical screening and emergency scenario preparation, maintaining consent and confidentiality, shared decision-making with players, logistically planning for travel, and supporting staff psychological wellbeing. Challenges included conflict with technical staff and club medical teams, unsatisfactory handovers, club agendas, risk-taking approaches, travel, resource limitations in women's football and staff wellbeing. Clinician experiences of best practice and challenges in the context of medical care in international football have been identified in this study. These findings provide practice-informed insights that may guide improvements in international football medicine.

To evaluate the incidence and characteristics of injuries and illnesses among elite-level national male beach soccer players over a seven-year-period. Injuries and illnesses were documented in accordance with the 'Football-Specific Extension of the IOC Consensus Statement: Methods for Recording and Reporting Epidemiological Data on Injury and Illness in Sport'. A sports medicine physician recorded all cases during training camps and tournaments of the Turkish national male beach soccer team from 1 January 2018, to 1 January 2025. Across 36 camps (382 days, 90 matches, 338 training sessions), 282 injuries (72 time-loss) and 180 illnesses (9 time-loss) were recorded among 45 players. Time-loss injury incidence rates were 51.7/1000 hours (h) in matches and 6.8/1000 h in training. The thigh was the most frequently injured body area leading to time-loss during matches (18.45/1000 h), while the foot was most affected in training (1.76/1000 h). Muscle/tendon injuries were the leading cause of time-loss in both settings (18.45 and 3.52 injuries/1000 h, respectively). Concussion incidence in matches was 7.38/1000 h. Fractures and meniscus injuries resulted in the highest injury burden (132.72 and 129.03 days/1000 h, respectively). The time-loss illness incidence was 1.6 illnesses/1000 player-days. This study highlights the relatively unique injury patterns of beach soccer, with the thigh and foot most frequently affected areas and muscle/tendon injuries the leading cause of time-loss in both matches and training. The findings also emphasize the high burden of knee and head injuries, particularly concussions, and suggest tailored prevention strategies are needed. Future research with more diverse cohorts is warranted.

Academy soccer coaches evaluate players' skilfulness to inform talent identification and development, focusing on technical proficiency, adaptability, decision-making, and influence. However, limited research has explored coaches' perceptions of skilfulness after completing an assessment. Furthermore, little is known about the potential overlap between current skill performance and future potential, or how coaches consider the skilfulness sub-dimensions. This mixed methods study explored how experienced Australian male youth soccer coaches ( = 5) and academy directors ( = 10) ( = 42.5 ± 13.8 years;  = 19.2 ± 9.8 years) rated players' skill performance and potential, their emphasis on sub-dimensions, and perceptions of evaluating them. Participants completed an online survey with pre-recorded small-sided game videos. Quantitatively, they rated players' skill performance and potential and emphasis on each sub-dimension using five-point Likert scales. Qualitatively, they responded to open-ended questions. Quantitative data were analysed using Spearman Rank Correlations and a Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. Qualitative responses were explored via content analysis. Coaches' ratings were partially supported by their reflections on evaluating skill, as they reported feeling competent in rating players' skill performance but required more information on players' backgrounds to assess potential. Given a high correlation between coaches' ratings of skill performance and potential ( = 0.79,  =  < .001), coaches may have inferred potential from players' performance, possibly explaining their desire for contextual information. While all sub-dimensions were rated as equally important for performance and potential, coaches described using unique criteria for each, highlighting the need for distinct information from skill assessments.

This study aimed at exploring the exposure of head impacts, i.e. headers and non-headers, in top-level female football players. The study included all teams ( = 10) and players ( = 238) in the Norwegian Women's Premier League during the 2023 season. Video analysis was used to register headers and non-headers in the 135 matches of the season. Potential head injuries were compared between video signs and medical reports. The header and non-header incidences were estimated per 90 match minutes with 95% confidence intervals (CI). We observed 9364 headers and 233 non-headers in 135 matches. Nine non-headers resulted in a head injury (all concussions), players' time loss ranging from 5 to 87 days. The highest number of headers performed by a single player in a match was 22. The total number of headers performed during a match varied between 34 and 125. Defenders had an estimated 4.2 (CI = 3.9-4.3), midfielders 2.9 (CI = 2.7-3.0), and forwards 2.6 (CI = 2.5-3.1) headers per match. There was a positive correlation between heading frequency and age. Forwards were the players most exposed to non-headers, with an estimated 0.09 per match. Most non-headers were caused by unintentional head-to-ball contact. We found that defenders had the highest header frequency. Header frequencies varied substantially between players and from match to match. Forwards had the highest risk of non-headers. Nine non-headers resulted in head injuries.

To explore the effects of Ramadan on proxy measures of match physical performance in professional Muslim football players competing in the Qatar Stars League using a three-phase interrupted time-series design. We examined total, high-speed running ( > 15 km·h), very-high speed running ( > 20 km·h), and sprinting ( > 25 km·h) distances covered (m) by 45 professional Muslim football players tracked during official matches (322 individual measurements over 10 consecutive league rounds) and training (1168 individual observations) in periods preceding, during, and after Ramadan 1445. Separate multivariable-adjusted random-effects generalized additive models quantified the phase-specific effects of Ramadan on match running distances interpreted against the random match-to-match variability in total, high-speed running, very-high speed running, and sprinting distance of ± 494 m (95% confidence interval [CI], 480 to 508 m), ±200 m (95% CI, 195 to 206 m), ±102 m (95% CI, 99 to 105 m), and ± 60 m (95% CI, 58 to 61 m), respectively. Model-based phase-specific effects of Ramadan indicated mean reductions of 254 m (95% CI, 138 to 370 m) in total distance, 92 m (95%CI, 59 to 123 m) in high-speed running, and 31 m (95% CI, 12 to 50 m) in very high-speed running distance that were indistinguishable from random within-subject match-to-match variability. Effects for sprinting distance were inconsistent. Running distances covered during training were materially equivalent across study phases. In Muslim-majority environments like the State of Qatar, professional Muslim football players seem able to cope with Ramadan without experiencing substantial impairments in match physical performance or reductions in training load.

This study investigated the prevalence of hormonal contraceptive (HC) use and perceived side-effects, menstrual cycle (MC)-related symptoms and perceived influences on performance, and pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD) screening items among female athletes in ladies Gaelic football and camogie. An anonymous online survey was completed by 455 athletes currently competing in these sports in Ireland. Participants provided information on demographics, sport participation, MC characteristics, HC use, perceived symptomatology, and PFD screening items. In this cohort, 51.7% of respondents were current HC users, with the oral contraceptive pill being the most commonly reported HC type (69.2%). Among HC users, 62.0% self-reported negative side effects with fatigue (37.2%) and mood changes (35.0%) the most prevalent. Of the non-HC users, 97.7% self-reported MC-related symptoms, with abdominal cramping (84.0%) and fatigue (82.2%) being the most prevalent. Pelvic floor dysfunction-related symptoms were also common, with urinary urgency (47.8%), genital pain (44.3%) the most experienced. These findings demonstrate a notable prevalence of HC use, MC-related symptoms, and PFD symptoms in this population. This study may provide a rationale for increased education and support for female athletes, coaches, and volunteers in Gaelic games regarding these health issues, as well as the development of individualised strategies for managing symptoms. Future research should focus on PFD in Gaelic Games athletes, incorporating objective measures and exploring interventions to mitigate these issues.

Wearable inertial measurement units (IMUs) may improve the objective analysis and load monitoring of skilled actions during team-sports, such as Australian Rules football (AF) kicking. This study aimed to determine the concurrent validity of a foot-mounted IMU to detect and quantify AF kicking output. Video footage compared kicks observed with kicks detected within the IMU. This study consisted of two phases; 1) On-Field Phase: Kicking actions were captured from  = 11 male and  = 25 female, professional AF participants throughout nine and five regular training sessions, respectively. 2) Protocol Phase consisted of  = 6 male and  = 8 female, semi-professional AF participants who performed a controlled kicking protocol, during a single testing session. Overall, the IMU exhibited good concurrent validity (Accuracy = 92% and 79%, Sensitivity = 0.92 and 0.79) in the On-Field and Protocol Phases, respectively. Kick intensities ranged from 6.30 m⋅s to 24.30 m⋅s. This study demonstrates the potential of the IMU to automate the detection and quantification of kicking output, such as volumes and intensities in AF.

Elite athlete cohorts in most sports outlive the general population. We aimed to assess the standardised mortality ratios (SMR) of male professional footballers in England from the 20th Century compared to the general population in England. We included players born between 1900-1972 who had played for the best performing 25 clubs in the English Football League in the 20th Century. We chose these years of birth meaning debut after the First World War (when football records became more reliable) and debut before the start of the Premier League (when teams became composed of a high number of non-British players). We used Wikidata as our primary source of publicly available data for players in our chosen cohort, supplemented by additional databases. Expected deaths (between 1963-2022) were calculated using English deaths by year and age from the Human Mortality Database and The Office of National Statistics. We identified 7620 eligible players from the 25 clubs as our cohort. By the end of 2022, 4049 players were still alive and 3571 had died. Expected number of deaths was 4242. The SMR for English professional footballers was 0.84 (95% confidence interval 0.81-0.88). We conclude that male professional footballers of the 20th Century had lower mortality rates than the age-matched general male population in England.

Cardiac screening of elite footballers for conditions associated with sudden cardiac arrest/death (SCA/D) is a requirement of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). This study aimed to report the findings, cardiac diagnoses, and outcomes from the New Zealand Football (NZF) screening program for FIFA tournaments since 2012. Footballers were screened with a personal/family history, physical examination, resting 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) and transthoracic echocardiogram. An audit (March 2024) reviewed screening records, comprising ECGs, echocardiograms, demographic data, follow-up testing, and diagnoses. A footballer was included if their screening episode included an ECG trace and an echocardiogram (with a report in English) and if there were sufficient details about the screening outcome. Rare results were reported as <5 to protect anonymity. If a footballer had multiple screenings, only the first was included. One hundred and forty-seven footballers (60% female, mean age 19.2 ± 3.7 years) were included. There were <5 diagnoses of conditions associated with SCA/D. No footballer retired for cardiac reasons and there were no incidents of SCA/D during the audit period. 4.8% of ECGs were abnormal; however, no patient was subsequently identified to have underlying structural heart disease on echocardiography. In screening echocardiograms, females had significantly lower indexed left ventricular end-systolic and diastolic volumes compared to males. The ECG and echocardiographic findings in this screening cohort were similar to those of other football populations.

The role of data-driven analyses is becoming more prominent in football. These have the potential to impact decision-making processes for team performance and player recruitment. Research in this area makes use of large datasets consisting of event and tracking data from multiple teams, leagues and seasons. A well-known computational solution is the Expected Goal model for post-match analysis and operational decision-making.Despite a shared research interest in football tactics, computational research in football is somewhat disconnected from the sports science community. We believe that there is much to gain from a closer collaboration between these disparate communities. To this end, the present commentary has three goals. First, we want to synthesize the historical computational work in areas such as evaluating tactics, predicting player and team success, and modeling players' movements. This work has largely been published in technical computational venues, and hence we hope to provide an access point for those interested in learning about this area. Second, we will highlight some emerging topics, such as automating parts of match analysis and analyzing decision-making. These are topics that require an in-depth collaboration with domain experts and therefore would benefit from a tighter integration among these communities. Third, we would like to discuss some advice and initiatives that we hope will be helpful in strengthening the ties between these communities.

Players are the intended end-users of injury prevention exercise programmes, but their experiences using these programmes have not been studied in amateur football. This qualitative study employed focus groups to explore amateur male and female football players' experiences of injury prevention training and motivators and facilitators of continuous injury prevention training. Six focus group discussions were accomplished - three with male and three with female players - totalling 36 players. A semi-structured interview guide was used, and the transcripts were analysed using qualitative content analysis and an inductive approach. Three main categories were described: ', ', and '. Players described that they were mainly motivated to engage in injury prevention training when they were already injured. They recognised the coach as having the main responsibility for injury prevention, but acknowledged that they could support the coach in this work. According to players, programme exercises and set-up could be arranged to make training fun and feasible for use in the long-term; for instance, by including partner exercises, integrating exercises in the football training, and establishing routines early on. Based on these results, we could try to encourage player motivation through education, increased player autonomy, and by structuring prevention training to be perceived as fun.