Men's Professional Football Research Articles

Characteristics of potential head injury situations at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022TM.

This exploratory video analysis study aimed to review characteristics of potential head injury situations during a men's professional international football tournament. For 64 matches of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ FIFA analysts used match footage to record all potential head injury situations. A potential head injury situation was defined as a player staying down for more than 5 s and/or requesting medical attention, and where the body impact location included the player's head. Characteristics were further recorded for match, player (i.e. player action including aerial duels), medical assessment, and outcome (e.g. substitution). Descriptive statistics are reported as well as Pearson's Chi-squared test (or Fisher's exact test) to explore potential head injury situations more likely to result in medical attention. In total, 149 potential head injury situations occurred in 56 matches (mean 2.33/match, range 0-6) involving 117 players. Eight matches resulted in no incidents. Aerial duels were the most frequent match characteristic leading to a potential head injury situation. Injury stoppage with on-pitch medical assessment occurred in 35 of the 149 potential head injury situations (23%), with pitch-side assessment also occurring in 15 situations (10%), resulting in four concussion substitutions. Players were more likely to require medical attention for potential head injuries sustained when the ball was loose (χ2 = 6.88; p = 0.038) when the injured player was jumping (FET p = 0.044) and for head-to-head contact (FET p = <0.001). Further exploration of aerial duels during match play which do and do not lead to potential and actual head injuries is recommended.

Association of Genetic Profile with Muscle Mass Gain and Muscle Injury Prevention in Professional Football Players after Creatine Supplementation.

In recent years, the study of creatine supplementation in professional athletes has been of great interest. However, the genetics involved in response to supplementation is unknown. The aim of this study was to analyse, for the first time, the relationship between muscle performance-related genes and the risk of an increased body mass index (BMI) and muscle mass and a decrease in fat mass in professional football players after creatine supplementation. For this longitudinal study, one hundred and sixty-one men's professional football players were recruited. The polymorphisms ACE I/D, ACTN3 c.1729C>T, AMPD1 c.34C>T, CKM c.*800A>G, and MLCK (c.49C>T and c.37885C>A) were genotyped using Single-Nucleotide Primer Extension (SNPE). To assess the combined impact of these six polymorphisms, a total genotype score (TGS) was calculated. The creatine supplementation protocol consisted of 20 g/day of creatine monohydrate for 5 days (loading dose) and 3-5 g/day for 7 weeks (maintenance dose). Anthropometric characteristics (body mass index (BMI), fat, and muscle mass) were recorded before and after the creatine supplementation protocol. Characteristics of non-contact muscle injuries during the 2022/2023 season were classified according to a consensus statement for injury recording. The results showed that the allelic frequencies of ACE and AMPD1 differed between responders and non-responders in muscle mass increase (all p < 0.05). Players with a TGS exceeding 54.16 a.u. had an odds ratio (OR) of 2.985 (95%CI: 1.560-5.711; p = 0.001) for muscle mass increase. By contrast, those with a TGS below 54.16 a.u. had an OR of 9.385 (95%CI: 4.535-19.425; p < 0.001) for suffering non-contact muscle injuries during the season. The increase in BMI and muscle mass in response to creatine supplementation in professional football players was influenced by a TGS derived from the combination of favourable genotypes linked to muscle performance. The CC genotype and C allele of AMPD1 were particularly associated with a higher likelihood of muscle mass increase under creatine supplementation in this group of professional football players.

Racialisation and the inequitable experiences of racialised minority coaches in men's professional football club youth academies in England

Racialisation and the inequitable experiences of racialised minority coaches in men's professional football club youth academies in England

Exploring soccer transfers in Spanish League-The hidden role of strategic differences among teams.

Transfers in the football world have become a hot topic in academic studies in recent years. Spanish league (La Liga) is one of the men's professional football leagues that have driven some of the most notorious transfers. In this way, we test determinants for the transfer relationships of football players in the Spanish League in the most expensive seasons with records (2018/2019 and 2019/2020 seasons). Furthermore, we identify determinants for the values of the observed transfers. The empirical analysis shows relevant findings. We recognize two implications. First, Spanish soccer transfers are not random and this evidence reflects the environment of imperfect competition characterizing La Liga. Second, the nonrandomness of the transfer process can be associated with an increasing inequality among teams and with a threat to the competitive balance in professional sports.

‘If you haven't got the contacts … you have no choice’: A figurational examination of unpaid work in football scouting in men's professional football in England

Association football has been viewed as an industry with considerable lucrative career prospects; however, this has not prevented the use of unpaid staff throughout football in the UK. There has been increasing academic research regarding the professionalisation and commercialisation of football, yet there has been little acknowledgement of the role of those working in football in an unpaid capacity. Therefore, this paper examines the culture of unpaid work in football scouting, by exploring the motivations of 12 unpaid scouts at professional clubs, from a figurational perspective. Our findings suggest that scouts want to work in the industry because of their ‘love of the game’, in a ‘quest for excitement’ in their career. Unpaid work was in the pursuit of experience and contacts, the latter of which was highly valued in the industry. Football clubs are enclosed figurations and the scouts placed importance on developing interdependent social relations to gain entry to the industry, demonstrating how football may be perceived nepotistic. The likelihood of gaining a paid role directly from an unpaid position was low and therefore the decisions to continually accept unpaid work represented the notion of fantasy-laden thinking.

Video analysis of concussion mechanisms and immediate management in French men's professional football (soccer) from 2015 to 2019.

In this study, the concussion mechanisms were analyzed in male professional competition football, with the main objective to specify the frequency of head-to-head impact, and immediate management of the concussed players was described in order to check its compliance with the recommendations of football's governing bodies. Based on continuously recorded data from the French Football Federation (FFF), a retrospective database of all reported concussions during matches in the 1st and 2nd French Male leagues was generated comprising seasons 2015/16-2018/19. Injury mechanisms, playing action, immediate medical assessment and management of concussed players, and foul play-referee's decision, were analyzed from video recordings. In total, 41 concussions were reported (incidence rate of 0.44/1000 hours of match exposure [95% CI: 0.40 to 0.49]) of which 36 were identified and analyzed on video sequences. The commonest playing action leading to concussion was aerial challenge (61%), and the main mechanism was head-to-head impact (47%). Following the head impact, 28% of concussed players were not medically assessed on pitch and 53% returned to play the same match. Head-to-head impact was not associated with systematic medical assessment, nor with foul play. In conclusion, the main cause of concussions involved head-to-head impact occurring when two players challenge for heading the ball in the air. The detection of potential concussive head impacts and the immediate management of players possibly concussed during matches remain insufficient according to the international recommendations. Some rules changes, with particular vigilance in case of head-to-head impact, should be discussed.

Análisis del comportamiento en los patrones tácticos ofensivos de los equipos masculinos del fútbol profesional en primera división de Bogotá, durante el torneo finalización 2017

Este artículo pretende analizar las variables que influyen en las fases ofensivas de los equipos masculinos del fútbol profesional en primera división de Bogotá, durante el Torneo Finalización 2017, cuando se encontraban cuatro equipos de la capital colombiana disputando el torneo de primera división (Millonarios, Santa Fe, La Equidad y Tigres). Para cada una de las acciones ofensivas analizadas se utilizan siete variables: resultado parcial, comienzo del patrón ofensivo, jugadores que participan, cantidad de técnicas individuales ofensivas, zonas de juego, fases del ataque y culminación del juego ofensivo, mediante un análisis observacional que permita distinguir si existen patrones tácticos ofensivos en los equipos analizados y si algunas de las variables inciden directamente en las maneras de atacar. Utilizando el software de registro LINCE, se analizaron cinco partidos de cada equipo, observados de manera secuencial (jornada 1, 5, 10, 15 y 20) para un total de 20 partidos. Los resultados afirman que en el fútbol colombiano los patrones tácticos ofensivos son muy cortos y no tienen analogía entre ellos. Además, se manifiestan ataques directos y jugadas de balón detenido como la estrategia más usual utilizada por los equipos para atacar.

Perspectives in football medicine.

The high injury rate among men's professional football players is well-known. Therefore, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) launched an injury study already in 2001. This study, the UEFA Elite Club Injury Study (ECIS), currently includes data from atotal of 51clubs from 18European countries with more than 14,000 registered injuries. With the 21stWorld Cup (WC) in Russia just around the corner, we have from our study identified ahigher match injury rate and ahigher proportion of severe injuries in the European Championships compared to the preceding club competitive seasons. Moreover, we have also recently showed that the muscle injury rate is higher when players are given arecovery window of five days or less between two matches. Considering the congested match schedule of the upcoming WC, it is therefore likely that injuries and fatigue once again will be atopic of discussion this summer.

EPIDEMIOLOGY OF MUSCLE INJURIES IN HONG KONG PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL

BackgroundMuscle injuries constitute a large percentage of all injuries in football.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the incidence and nature of muscle injuries in male professional footballers.DesignProspective cohort...

INJURIES IN MEN'S PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL

BackgroundThe first step on the way to developing preventive measures is the description of epidemiology within the target group. This is not known for German Men's Professional Football so far.ObjectiveAnalysis...

ACL injuries in men's professional football: a 15-year prospective study on time trends and return-to-play rates reveals only 65% of players still play at the top level 3 years after ACL rupture

BackgroundStudies investigating the development of ACL injuries over time in football are scarce and more data on what happens before and after return to play (RTP) are needed.AimTo investigate (1)...

Hamstring injuries have increased by 4% annually in men's professional football, since 2001: a 13-year longitudinal analysis of the UEFA Elite Club injury study

BackgroundThere are limited data on hamstring injury rates over time in football.AimTo analyse time trends in hamstring injury rates in male professional footballers over 13 consecutive seasons and to distinguish...

Why ‘the best way of learning to coach the game is playing the game’: conceptualising ‘fast-tracked’ high-performance coaching pathways

ABSTRACTAt the beginning of the 2013/2014 season in England and Wales, 90 head coaches of the 92 men's national professional football league clubs and 20 of the 22 men's professional rugby union clubs had tenure as a professional elite player in their respective sports. Moreover, Rynne [(2014). ‘Fast track’ and ‘traditional path’ coaches: Affordances, agency and social capital. Sport, Education and Society, 19, 299–313] has claimed that many former elite athletes are ‘fast-tracked’ through formal accreditation structures into these high-performance coaching roles. The reasons why former elite athletes dominate head coaching roles in professional sports clubs and why a ‘fast-track’ pathway from elite athlete to high-performance coach is supported remain unclear. Thereby the present study sought to address this issue by investigating the basis for ‘fast-tracked’ head coaching appointments. Eight male directors of men's professional football and rugby union clubs in England were interviewed to examine how particular coaching skills and sources of knowledge were valorised. Drawing upon Bourdieu's conceptual framework, the results suggested that head coaching appointments were often based upon the perceived ability of head coaches gaining player ‘respect’. Experiences gained during earlier athletic careers were assumed to provide head coaches with the ability to develop practical sense and an elite sporting habitus commensurate with the requirements of the field of elite sports coaching. This included leadership and practical coaching skills to develop technical and tactical astuteness, from which, ‘respect’ could be quickly gained and maintained. The development of coaching skills was rarely associated with only formal coaching qualifications. The ‘fast-tracking’ of former athletes for high-performance coaching roles was promoted by directors to ensure the perpetuation of specific playing and coaching philosophies. Consequently, this may exclude groups from coaching roles in elite men's sport. The paper concludes by outlining how these findings might imply a disjuncture between the skills promoted during formal coaching qualifications and the expectations club directors have of elite coaches in these sports.

Time-trends and circumstances surrounding ankle injuries in men's professional football: an 11-year follow-up of the UEFA Champions League injury study

BackgroundAnkle injury is common in football, but the circumstances surrounding them are not well characterised.AimTo investigate the rates, especially time-trends, and circumstances of ankle injuries in male professional football.Methods27 European...

The role of physical education and other formative experiences of three generations of female football fans

The experiences of female sports fans have been largely marginalised in academic research to date and little research has examined the formative sporting experiences of female spectators. This article draws on 51 semi-structured interviews with three generations of female fans of one (men's) professional football club (Leicester City), to consider the extent to which sports participation at school and elsewhere influences female football fandom, and also explores the influence of the family in channelling young females into or away from sport. We begin by examining the extent to which women had opportunities to experience football at school and how the type of school they attended affected these opportunities. We consider continuities and discontinuities between each generation's experiences by examining the influence of sexist teachers, the ubiquity of what the women viewed as ‘body conscious girls’ and the effects of peer pressure. Finally, we examine the ways in which families obstructed or facilitated young females' interest in football, and the importance of mainly male role models within and beyond the family. We conclude with some reflections on feminist praxis and its relevance for young people's formative sporting experiences.

Regional differences in injury incidence in European professional football

The objective of this study was to investigate regional differences in injury incidence in men's professional football in Europe. A nine-season prospective cohort study was carried out between 2001-2002 and 2009-2010 involving 1357 players in 25 teams from nine countries. Teams were categorized into different regions according to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification system. Teams from the northern parts of Europe (n = 20) had higher incidences of injury overall [rate ratio 1.12, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06 to 1.20], training injury (rate ratio 1.16, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.27), and severe injury (rate ratio 1.29, 95% CI 1.10 to 1.52), all statistically significant, compared to teams from more southern parts (n = 5). In contrast, the anterior cruciate ligament injury incidence was lower in the northern European teams with a statistically significant difference (rate ratio 0.43, 95% CI 0.25 to 0.77), especially for noncontact anterior cruciate ligament injury (rate ratio 0.19, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.39). In conclusion, this study suggests that there are regional differences in injury incidence of European professional football. However, further studies are needed to identify the underlying causes.

The influence of climate type on injury epidemiology in european professional football

BackgroundThe influence of different weather conditions on injury risk has only been scarcely investigated.ObjectiveThe objective was to study the influence of climate type on injury epidemiology in men's professional football...

Stress fractures in elite male football players

The objective was to investigate the incidence, type and distribution of stress fractures in professional male football players. Fifty-four football teams, comprising 2379 players, were followed prospectively for 189 team seasons during the years 2001-2009. Team medical staff recorded individual player exposure and time-loss injuries. The first team squads of 24 clubs selected by UEFA as belonging to the 50 best European teams, 15 teams of the Swedish Super League and 15 teams playing their home matches on artificial turf pitches were included. In total, 51 stress fractures occurred during 1,180,000 h of exposure, giving an injury incidence of 0.04 injuries/1000 h. A team of 25 players can therefore expect one stress fracture every third season. All fractures affected the lower extremities and 78% the fifth metatarsal bone. Stress fractures to the fifth metatarsal bone, tibia or pelvis caused absences of 3-5 months. Twenty-nine percent of the stress fractures were re-injuries. Players that sustained stress fractures were significantly younger than those that did not. Stress fractures are rare in men's professional football but cause long absences. Younger age and intensive pre-season training appear to be risk factors.

Migration, Masculinity and the Fugitive State of Mind in the Irish Emigrant Footballer Autobiography: the Case of Paul McGrath

Copyright (c) 2010 by Marcus Free. This text may be archived and redistributed both in electronic form and in hard copy, provided that the author and journal are properly cited and no fee is charged for access. Abstract. The 'confessional' autobiography has become a popular variant of professional football autobiography in Britain. Co-written 'autobiographies' by prominent former emigrant Irish or Irish descended international footballers have featured prominently in this sub-genre. Their 'confessions' of alcoholism, gambling, infidelity, irresponsibility towards partners or dependents, or underlying ontological insecurity might be seen as an insightful engagement with their lives as male footballers in Britain. However, focusing on two autobiographies of Paul McGrath, and reading these 'troubled' accounts using psychoanalytic perspectives on sport, migration and masculinity, it is argued that they are contradictory texts which embody a peculiar variation on the emigrant fugitive state of mind (Davar, 1996), both approximating and deferring mature, reflexive engagement with the social and cultural construction of identity, allowing them to occupy a liminal but discontent imaginary space in which adolescent masculinity can be indefinitely extended. The homosocial world of men's professional football is a key factor in this.