A Systematic Review of the Relationship between Workload and Injury Risk of Professional Male Soccer Players

Abstract

The number of studies on the relationship between training and competition load and injury has increased exponentially in recent years, and it is also widely studied by researchers in the field of professional soccer. In order to provide practical guidance for workload management and injury prevention in professional athletes, this study provides a review of the literature on the effect of load on injury risk, injury prediction, and interpretation mechanisms. The results of the research show that: (1) It appears that short-term fixture congestion may increase the match injury incidence, while long-term fixture congestion may have no effect on both the overall injury incidence and the match injury incidence. (2) It is impossible to determine conclusively whether any global positioning system (GPS)-derived metrics (total distance, high-speed running distance, and acceleration) are associated with an increased risk of injury. (3) The acute:chronic workload ratio (ACWR) of the session rating of perceived exertion (s-RPE) may be significantly associated with the risk of non-contact injuries, but an ACWR threshold with a minimum risk of injury could not be obtained. (4) Based on the workload and fatigue recovery factors, artificial intelligence technology may possess good predictive power regarding injury risk.

Monitoring load, wellness, and psychological variables in female and male youth national team football players during international and domestic playing periods

“…and the associated internal response load (e.g., heart rate, perception of effort). Long-as well as short-term increases in internal load have been shown to be associated with over-training (11), increased risk of injury (12), and increased need for rest and recovery (13). Similarly, sudden changes in normal routines (e.g., extensive travelling, fixture congestion etc.)…”

Workload Risk Factors for Pitching-Related Injuries in High School Baseball Pitchers

“…30 When considering workload, previous data have indicated that increased workloads are associated with injury in numerous lower extremity sports such as rugby and soccer (futbol). 15,17,46 However, limited data are available on the concept of workload and its application to baseball players and pitchers. 27,28 A further understanding of workload is also important given potential confusion of how to define workload in a baseball pitcher.…”

Weekly External Load Performance Effects on Sports Injuries of Male Professional Football Players

“…According to the literature, TD, HSR, ACC, and DEC are predictive factors of players' risk of injury [36].The relationship between external load and the likelihood of sports injury occurrence has recently been discussed using those GPS metrics [25,[37][38][39][40][41]. Indeed, a recent systematic review on this topic reinforced the importance of monitoring players' external load across training sessions [27]. Regarding the analyzed external load metrics, our results sustained that the players are more prone to suffer any type of sports injuries due to a significant increase in TD, HSR, ACC, and DEC, when comparing the average of a four-week block before the injury with the seasonal average and the fourweek block after clinical discharge.…”

“…Therefore, we aimed to calculate the season average value as a representative variable of the full conditions of the season, without the exception of any conditioning factors that players and coaches cannot control. Thus, the choice of these time periods is related to the fact that most of the recent studies in this area have followed these guidelines, as can be seen in a recent systematic review of professional football players on the topic of workloads and injury risk [27]. Therefore, it becomes possible to compare results and draw conclusions and reflections from what happened with scientific studies in the same area.…”