3, 10, 12 Approximately 57‐80% 2, 9, 11, 12 of injuries occur in matches, up to one quarter of these 2, 11, 13 stemming from foul play. 2, 3, 10 The majority of injuries are acute or traumatic, 11 with chronic or reinjures accounting for only a small proportion of all injuries. Between 60‐87% of soccer injuries involve the lower extremities. player hours in European men’s professional soccer for an average of two injuries per player per season, 2, 9 which for a team of 25 players, translates to 50 injuries of varying severity per season, resulting in significant medical costs, diminished club performance, and lost playing time. Therefore, the purpose of this clinical commentary was to examine the existing literature relevant to kicking in soccer and propose an interval kicking program (IKP) that can be used as a framework to return an athlete to kicking a soccer ball following lower extremity injury. 7, 8 However, to the authors’ knowledge there are no published interval kicking programs to prepare soccer players for return to sport after sustaining a lower extremity injury. 4‐ 6 Similarly, interval running programs are also common, gradually reintroducing the biomechanical and cardiovascular demands of running. Interval programs, integrated as part of a return to sports progression, gradually expose upper extremity athletes to the demands of their sports as they return to baseball, softball, golf, and tennis. 2, 3 Sport‐specific biomechanical progressions can augment loading, reducing the risk of re‐injury as an athlete attempts to return to sport. 1 Unfortunately, the demands of the sport place the lower extremities at high risk for injury. Thus, the purpose of this clinical commentary was to review the existing literature elucidating the biomechanics of kicking a soccer ball and propose a progressive kicking program to support clinicians in safely returning their soccer athletes to the demands of sport.Īpproximately 265 million people play soccer, making it the most popular sport in the world. Generalized return to soccer progressions have also been published in order to assist clinicians in safely returning athletes to sport however, there are no specific progressions for the early stages of kicking designed to introduce stance leg loading and kicking leg impact. Sport‐specific biomechanical progressions to augment loading and gradually reintroduce a player to the demands of sport have been developed for upper extremity sports such as baseball, softball, tennis, and golf. Regardless of whether the injured limb is an athlete’s preferred kicking or stance leg, a lower extremity injury may affect their ability to impact the ball. The majority of all soccer injuries affect the lower extremities.
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