On the occasion of the centennial year of the two greatest Croatian soccer teams: brief review of the evidence base for team physicians

Abstract

There is an expression that “soccer is the most important unimportant thing in the world.” Although everyone admits it is “only a game,” enormous importance is attached to it. Social significance of this sport is so great that it inevitably affects the health of people. In one of the most extreme examples, a disagreement at a soccer match sparked a war between two Central American countries, leaving thousands of people dead or displaced (1). But this notorious event is just the tip of the iceberg. Days when soccer games take place – usually Sundays – are associated with a rise in violence, while the soccer fever during great international contests, such as the World Cup or Euro Cup, results in an increased number of emergency calls to ambulance services (2). Fans intuitively know that loud and passionate cheering can influence refereeing decisions in favor of their team (3), but they are perhaps less aware that such behavior is associated with a significant increase in rates of acute cardiovascular events (4,5). Rhetoric of violence is obvious when fans metaphorically demand from players to “die on the soccer field,” but unfortunately, it is not unheard of that players die on the soccer field not only metaphorically but literally (6).