When it comes to sports, people often think that football is a safer option than soccer. However, the truth is that both sports can cause concussions due to collisions with players, goal posts, or the ground. American football is particularly dangerous, as it is an aggressive sport that can lead to life-changing injuries. In comparison, soccer is significantly safer and suitable for young people to play without any permanent damage.
According to Pop Warner, soccer is safer than football. Generally speaking, soccer is safer than rugby, hockey, and football for adults, and even safer for young athletes. However, women's soccer was found to be riskier than men's soccer, but less risky than women's ice hockey. Soccer players tend to enjoy the contact and roughness of the ball more than basketball players do.
Heading the ball is the most common activity that leads to concussions in soccer (30.6% of all men's soccer concussions and 25.3% of all girls' soccer concussions occurred when the player headed the ball). But contact between athletes during other phases of the game can also lead to concussions. Saying that soccer is safer than football can be misleading for families trying to make informed decisions about their children's safety. Football players are constantly running around a field measuring approximately 140 by 100 yards while kicking a round ball. The excitement for women's World Cup soccer has reached a peak this year in France, with a record number of spectators and 1 billion viewers expected on all platforms around the world.
It is true that baseball has fewer injuries than football, but if you are injured in baseball, it is likely to be more serious than a football injury. In baseball, 45% of injuries were to the upper limb compared to only 6.2% in football. If you want to reduce concussions in football, you should focus on enforcing the rules of the game and decreasing contact between athletes rather than banning heading the ball. Soccer may not be a contact sport per se, but it does involve contact that can cause bodily harm due to players wearing spiked shoes. The passion and intensity with which this game is played increases the likelihood of injury.
Although many people say that soccer is not a contact sport, it actually has very little protection. If you are worried about brain injuries in violent sports such as football or hockey, you should know that other sports such as soccer also carry similar health risks. Since soccer players run at full speed on the playing field, overload injuries can develop and increase the risk of injury.
