Of all the sports worldwide that young athletes play, soccer ranks No. 1, with nearly 4 million children and adolescents participating each year. The total has steadily increased since 1990, and that growth trend shows no signs of slowing. Unfortunately, some studies indicate that with the rapid rise in youth soccer participation, there may also be a corresponding increase in injuries.

Currently, most orthopedic injuries sustained by youth soccer players occur during competition rather than practice, and girls may be at higher risk than boys. Additionally, youth soccer injury risk tends to increase with an athlete’s age. As youth soccer emerges as a year-round sport that athletes can play outdoors or indoors, orthopedic overuse injuries are also a consideration. The most serious injuries in youth soccer tend to be the lower extremities—specifically, to the knees and ankles.

How can the healthcare community, coaches and families work together to encourage our young athletes to participate in soccer while also helping to reduce the injury risk?

For starters, a pre-participation physical should be a must for all young athletes. Such an evaluation can identify musculoskeletal malformations, previous injuries or other conditions that could help determine whether it is safe for a young athlete to play soccer.

 Also important in reducing the risk of injuries, particularly to the knees, is ensuring your athlete is trained in proper landing and deceleration techniques. Likewise, focused muscle strengthening exercises will help safeguard a soccer player’s health.

Additionally, a young soccer athlete’s training program should include neuromuscular warmup exercises as well as proprioception (the body’s ability to sense its own position and movements) and plyometrics (jumping or explosive movement) drills. One aim is to help strengthen the gluteal and hamstring muscles—which, when strong, can protect the knees. For a gold-standard warmup and training program, the FIFA 11 training module is highly recommended for athletes of all ages.

 Year-round training in a single sport, in soccer or another sport, can put young players at a significantly increased risk of overuse injuries. Especially for the youngest athletes, allow a few months of rest between seasons.

Finally, parents, be sure your young soccer players are wearing the right cleats for the surface they are playing on. Coaches, you should always inspect soccer field surfaces to ensure they are free from holes, mud and debris. Any area that can force players to suddenly alter their body mechanics or speed puts that player at increased injury risk.

Education is power for players, parents and coaches. By implementing these injury prevention strategies, our young athletes can continue to participate in the sport they love, creating incredible memories that will last a lifetime.