My fiancé used to play for the leicester academy. She played with a few of the lionesses. Her career was cut short by an ACL tear and then another one shortly after returning to playing. She’s now waiting for her 6th or 7th ACL operation and will need a double knee replacement when she’s 30/in her early 30’s and possibly a hip replacement shortly after that for where she’s had to accommodate her weak knees. Bear in mind, she’s only 24
Most Male Footballers are taken down before they hit 20 by inury and never make it... you jsut never hear about them since they never "make it" for health reasons. Its not enough to be talented in sports like these... ou need to be made of stones. It is obvious though that genetics will always prevail depsite what we believe in. Takes one tough mind to make yourself stronger if you are already at a disadvantage.
Just had my acl and meniscus repaired last year, recovery sucks but it's so much better and faster these days thanks to advancements in medical tech. 30+ years ago those injuries ended many footballers careers.
@@thelonesoldier4518 I got mine at the Zambrano Hospital in Monterrey Mexico, we have great doctors here. It only took two weeks to schedule my surgery after consultation. My doctor Javier Garza specializes in knee joints with 35 years operating athletes. I went back to the gym and surfing in just 6 months, it changed my life. 🥹
I played academy football for Mamelodi Sundowns here in South Africa and when I was 18 I tore my ACL and when I recovered I was just never the same. There was a huge mental block that I couldn't get over, that was my first serious injury and I just developed this fear of getting injured and I stopped playing as passionately as I used too. I just couldn't move as fast as I wanted and I no longer could explode as I could before getting injured (I played as an ATM and my strongest trait was burst ball carries) after tearing my ACL for the 2nd time on the same leg I just had to quit because it was just never meant to be. This is the main reason I don't think I could watch my daughter play football.
7 times more likely is massive. Hopefully more funding and interest in the Women's game will mean that future generations are better supported at younger ages to help with this. I'd love to see more content like this!
Be nice if they actually put more effort in the biology (wider hips = straighter legs for example) it was a passing comment. rather than having “luck” as number 1 😂😂😂.
@@Daniboi971well to be fair, luck is a big part of whether any player (men or women) sustains a serious injury. Some players are just simply straight up unlucky and sustain career-ending injuries. Obviously the biological side is more important, but there was nothing wrong with him mentioning that
Its kinda funny that in basketball new generation guys tend to get more injury prone bcs the doctors said played too much competitive games in the aau system. But having less games when younger made women footballers more injury prone. The landing stuff is very real, theres a lot of that breakdown on how to land after a jump could avoid injuries. Check out comparison of landing from westbrook and derrick rose.
@@Th3UprightMan well, that is life. Sometimes we miss out on chances trough no fault of our own. Some people could have been president, but shot by the CIA. Some would criticise the queen of england, and get in a car accident, and others have an injury preventing them from playing proffesional sports.
Tough one for NBA players with all the quick cuts and intense short sprints, plays a big part mentally when they try to regain their previous athleticism. Look at Derrick Rose, took him 2 years ro return cuz he wasnt mentally secure with that knee after the ACL tear.
Thank you for making this video. Unfortunately many of these players won't be physically ready for the FIFA womens world cup in July 2023. ACL injuries are affecting players at the grassroot as well, which needs to be talked about as well.
wouldn't the factor of having wider hips (larger torque through the joint, elongated muscles, ligaments and tendons) play a factor on the stability, strength, placiticty, and stiffness of the ACL in woman?
The wider hips point is part of the reason for the straight/knock knee issue they mention at 2:40 - although they strangely somewhat skipped over that point & didn’t really explain how the naturally wider hips can lead to it
It’s actually not as high a risk factor as reported. It’s where the research was focused earlier in the last decade but more recently data shows that ‘Q angle’ is an non-significant contributor to injury risk. More likely the later points about “everything being smaller” and preconditioning being the bigger issues.
I bet that's a big part of it. Look at the elbows as well in women and if racket sports have any injury data. Muscle mass around the joints also is hugely important to support. Then I think sheer genetic difference eg the material is probably not as robust as in men due to selection over millenia.
Honestly it’s a joke, I read like 5 years ago that women will get more of those injuries because of that. Nowadays people involved in girls football are lobbying that it’s because of less funding and facility’s etc blah blah blah 🙄🙄😮💨
I was listening to a podcast about biomechanics and movement patterns of athletes the other day. I won’t pretend to be an expert, but there’s a big importance on strength of the arch, ankle alignment/height and “bow-setting” while running and during changes of direction that play a part in creating healthy movements for athletes. Modern athletes are moving in an unhealthy way that’s putting way more pressure on the inside of the knee leading to the acl epidemic in sports. I’m more worried about the rising injury tally in young athletes. Would be cool to see this talked about more too. 👍
I know I heard in a podcast that in basketball, the peak age for athletes there actually moved back to like 20's - 24 as colleges out there train these guys up to their peak when playing for them so that when they reach NBA, their body has been strained so much that they can't reach the same jump height they were getting in college. I do wonder if by making athletes train and play so much at such a young age, they wear away their body too much. I do also wonder if bad running habits are learnt as they learning a technique while their body is still growing and so it mismatches their body or if it's a trained trait to help them look after the ball better (e.g. Sterling and Hazard's style of running)
@@joshbrown2217 Thanks for the reply, that’s some great input about overtraining youth and establishing poor movement patterns at a young age. “Overuse injuries” is a pretty serious epidemic in sports, but it maybe overuse of poor mechanics that creates wear and tear on the body.
Genetics and your biology is one of the worst things about injuries. I remember a commentator for this Barcelona game with Raphina (brother of Thiago) talk about how they both have knee problems, and it’s genetic. Both have a predisposition to getting injuries, and it’s clear that throughout both of these two siblings careers they have been injured many many times. Yeah, a failing body that isn’t even your fault because you do everything like how you’re suppose to has gotta be one of the worst feelings.
Another sensational example are the Bender twins. Sven was injury prone prior to turning 25 and Lars setbacks followed after 25. They both retired on the same day!
My cousin played professionaly in Mexico recently and suffered an ACL injury which has had to leave her out of the game perhaps for good. It's interesting that you guys touch the subject of anatomy because I believe it's possible that the training sessions are also male anatomy based and that may be cause for wear and tear on women. I can't recall if it was Menotti or someone else, who stated that footballers used to be trained similar to race horses and that caused injury and poor performance. When that changed, so did the game. Maybe there's something we can still learn from that.
@@samkelorashuza5949 Its not my conclusion. It is simply a fact admitted by medical experts. Most leaders who direct funding are usually male. It is not a surprise.
@@samkelorashuza5949 The fact that in the past, all medical research was done on men and only men. For example, autism and adhd symptoms are diagnosed still to this day by what is typically shown in boys, this leads to girls having a much lower diagnosis rate. Current research I'd say is pretty balanced when it comes to new things, but we still haven't gone back and retraced for women.
@@amadandearbhte4318 Thats some weird logic right there It could just be that autism and ADHD is much more common in boys, and it seems to be the case
Thank you for doing this, finally there is a great and infleuncial youtuber reporting on this issue. There should be more awareness to prevent these injuries. Your channel is so great and doing such great things for the football community. Ur a legend
I do think there are another 2 factors which was missed. 1. The grounds they play on are not always the best quality and so there is more chance of trauma being added to the knee when collisions with another player or landing on the ground. This along with the fact that as the game is still in it's infancy of professionalism, the players tend to go in harder on challenges and less gets called as they want the game to be seen as more physical than the men's game (as it helps overcome a lot of the stereotypes). 2. As the pool of players (talented players) is smaller as the game is still growing, a lot of the talented players have to play a lot of games in congested time tables and so there is less time to rest and heal. I also think this is why ACL's are rising in the men's game as they are being made to play more minutes.
It has to be biological and not what you staed. players in lower leagues and sunday leagues dont have the best fields or technology but dont suffer injuries as the PRo womens. also the pool of talent is limited in high schoolboys but you dont see these injuries
@Josh Brown dafak are you talking about?I live in Bangladesh, a 3rd world country.The grounds here are the poorest in the world since the govt doesn’t care about football here.And our pros barely get any injury because of the poor nature of the grounds.
@@limbeboy7 I mean it can be a factor of both. I never said it wasn't biological, but the pitch quality and pool of talent probably also play a factor and in regards to the high school point, you have to remember we're talking about pros who will run more and play at a higher intensity while also playing more official matches. High school kids won't push themselves or play at such an intensity which would put them at risk of such injuries.
@@footballstar6073 Yeah but as you said, your gov doesn't car about football, so I doubt the quality is there, which means the intensity at which they play at isn't that intense. My point was that as they are pros playing at a pretty high level, they're going to be straining their bodies to reach those levels. If they start doing that on bad pitches and playing 90 mins in a congested schedule, their bodies are obviously at risk of injuries and strains which could lead to more serious injuries. You don't get that at lower league football.
Now this explains why most players today play at the highest level even in their late 30s, the sports science and behind the scenes logistics has vastly vastly improved, won't be surprised in the 2050s players playing at the top level into their mid 40s
Yes players like Pele Maradona already left their prime at just 31 although they were still physically strong but their bodies cannot sustain more injuries because of the brutal tackles at that time!!
wait, what?? That's not happening at all, unless you're referring to female football or some other sport (in which case, I have no idea). Football players still perform best around 25 y.o. At 30 they ALL have begun their decline. The difference is nowadays there's access to much better nutrition, training, recovery sessions, etc. And top league players can easily afford it. But a player being physically better in his 30's than his 20'... I can't think of an example.
I was wondering about this a couple of months ago when I saw crazy numbers on the amount of women that was suffering from ACL injuries. A lot of women will miss the World Cup because of knee injuries.
Other than the "7x more likely to rupture ACL" stat, the most surprising thing to me from the video is that Woman are playing in boots crafted for men. Shoes have differences in men's and women's sizes. How is this not the same for sporting footwear?
Knee health is probably the most looked over aspect of the modern training. People will train literally everything else but neglect the chain of ligaments and tendons in the knee it's self. 7 ACL operations on my own knees for anyone that think they have more experience on the matter 😅 😅 Took 6 to figure it out and the 7th was on the other leg from a direct impact injury. ATG kneesovertoes
This comment section cracks me up. They literally brought on a knee repair specialist who specifically explains that data on women's injuries and recovery is badly lacking, but apparently RUclips commenters are onto something he's not about female anatomy. Get a grip.
They also all go on about "women and men are different duh huh", Like yeah? No one says otherwise, in fact, the freaking video we are watching right now says so too. It's incredible the amount of stupidity we see here.
@@NoCluYT A lot of the women's sides have the home stadium as the training ground for the men's or higher level youth teams which lends to a theoretical rutted field situation in rainier weeks when compared to the men's team who gets to play in the much bigger home stadium. Edit: In good weather or early in the season, the pitch is probably as comparable. But it'll eventually become a disparity with rainy seasons which in much of Europe is winter.
@@Eibarwoman Still, grassroots and non-league men play on worse pitches than elite women, and the high incidence of ACL injuries seen in women's football is not seen in the lower level men's game. So, it would seem that the biggest factors in the ACL epidemic in women's football are either physical or anatomical issues.
@@sebfox2194 There does seem to be some structural issues that are linked to estrogen itself. The best source of this would come from the realm of transgender medicine where fairly frequently reports of modest reduction in height (as much as 5 cm in particularly tall trans women, but usually 1 to 3 cm when reported) and foot size reduction (maybe a size to a size and a half at most) are reported with estrogen therapy in transgender women from ligament and muscle size changes. It wouldn't be surprising if the combination of shorter, tighter ligaments and playing surface conditions lends to an increased risk of ACL tears. Edit: Added details of the dimensional shifts reported by estrogen which seems to be fairly potent at altering the structural composition of soft tissue and ligaments. There may also be other factors I haven't come across such as the football shoes and more that apply.
I have a theory on why women are suffering significantly more ACL injuries compared to men. It will be left field for many and refuted I'm sure, but here goes. I believe it's down to drug use, specifically a specific type of antibiotic. Fluoroquinolone antibiotics are incredibly powerful broad spectrum drugs which are frequently over and incorrectly prescribed. More often than not they're prescribed for infections of the water works, renal etc. Women as a ratio are prescribed 5 times more than men, mainly due to women almost elusively being the ones who suffer from these ailments. They are usually a sledgehammer for a walnut treatment. Unfortunately many recipients of these drugs don't realise newly acquired symptoms in the days weeks or months after ceasing their use are down to side effects of these drugs. Most fails to recognise the association of this drug to their new symptoms, symptoms comprising of a bible length list of issues. Such issue include muscular-skeletal issues, collagen degradation, metal ion chelation, mitochondrial/dna issues. Essentially for many, these drugs wreck your body, but because the damage they cause is often insidious and progressive it is usually not linked back to this drugs use. Dr's are ignorant to their dangers from never having been taught about their problems, and or the medical professionals failing to fully understand and recognise the problems. It would be very interesting to issue anonymous questionnaires to all male and female player detailing their previous prescribed medication and their injuries and see if any correlations occur. I'm suspicious that many of the women's acl injuries are linked to this antibiotics' use. I know many who've suffered severely as a result of this toxic for some class of drugs. Edit- incidentally the ratio of women to men suffering adverse reactions to these drugs is coincidentally the same as the ratio in the number being prescribed 5:1. Therefore more women are prescribed this drug than men, more women suffer adverse reactions than men, plus factor in the metabolic differences between the sexes and interesting conclusions could be found.
The physiological point is valid in another role in the world. Military, not acl but femur fractures. The stresses of weight has lead to fractures of femur which is a medical emergency due to proximity to major artery along the length of femur. It’s not given the proper exposure because it’s a example of difference of body. Eventually someone will step forward and explain why this will be a cause of many dq from some military roles.
Women are indeed more prone to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries compared to men, particularly in certain sports such as soccer and basketball. While the exact reasons for this disparity are not entirely understood, several factors are believed to contribute to the higher incidence of ACL injuries in women: Anatomic differences: Women typically have wider hips, resulting in a greater angle between the thighbone (femur) and shinbone (tibia). This increased angle, known as the Q angle, can put more stress on the ACL, making it more vulnerable to injury. Hormonal factors: Hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle may influence ligament laxity. Increased laxity can make the ACL more susceptible to injury. Neuromuscular control: Women often exhibit differences in neuromuscular control compared to men. This includes factors such as muscle strength imbalances, reduced hamstring-to-quadriceps strength ratios, and altered landing mechanics during activities like jumping and cutting. These factors can contribute to improper joint stabilization and increased ACL injury risk. Ligament size and strength: Research suggests that women may have smaller and weaker ACLs compared to men, which could make them more susceptible to injury. Training techniques: Differences in training programs and techniques between men and women, especially during adolescence, may play a role. Historically, women's sports have received less attention, resulting in potentially inadequate training and conditioning programs. Insufficient preparation can increase the risk of ACL injuries. It's important to note that while women have a higher incidence of ACL injuries, this does not mean that all women are prone to such injuries, nor does it imply that men are completely immune. Understanding these risk factors can help guide injury prevention strategies, such as targeted strength training, neuromuscular training, and education on proper landing and cutting techniques.
I don’t know about women’s sports in the US (really just the WNBA) but there are quite a few players who suffer ACL tears, like Carson Wentz, Kyler Murray, Von Miller, Tom Brady, Bill Gramatica, Rob Gronkowski, as well as Teddy Bridgewater, just to name a few that have happened over the past 15 years in the NFL. Derrick Rose, Kyle Lowry, as well as 95 more players who have suffered a torn ACL in the NBA since 1980. Recently in hockey you have Mason Shaw, who suffered his fourth tear (knees probably are like Kaká’s), lIlya Mikheyev, Luke Kunin who has had it twice, to name a few. In baseball, there is Rhys Hoskins, who sadly plays for my Phillies, Ronald Acuña Jr., Royce Lewis has torn it twice, Gavin Lux, Adalberto Mondesi, Kyle Schwarber, Marcus Stroman, Andrew McCutchen, and more. All of that was just in the last 8 or so years, and that’s not even all. You can play on a torn ACL, as the hamstrings provide support to the knee, but if that goes and you haven’t gotten ACL reconstruction surgery, good luck staying fast. Mickey Mantle played nearly his entire HoF career on a torn ACL because they didn’t know how to treat it in the 50s
The main problem is the "Q-Angle", which is greater in the legs of women than in men. This is due to wider hips. The higher the Q-Angle, the more likely is an ACL injury.
Fellow commenters, I fully understand the sensitivity to much of society ignoring gender differences, but did you watch the rest of the video past the “Luck” portion? The rest of the video focuses on the unique biological challenges faced by women, as well as potential solutions to those issues.
*I would like* to have seen them address the significantly lower standard of pitch that women are forced to play-and especially practice-upon. The situation is improving but the gains to be realised from female athletes building fit-for-purpose biomechanics from an earlier stage of life can be entirely undone by the disparity in the pitches they are provided.
That’s exactly part of the reason Megan Rapinoe hurt her knee in 2015. The practice field in Honolulu was a mess and holding water after storms. Pinoe slipped and tore her ACL.
They’re not “forced” to do anything. They can just stop their hobby and do something else. The demand for women’s football just isn’t there, deal with it and stop crying. Men all over the world play on horrible pitches as well and way worse than those women.
All of those things are damn near irrelevant. There are MANY men's football leagues who play in fields that look mountainous to say the least and they dont suffer nearly as many ACL tears. Women's bodies are weaker and not as fit for contact sports. Denying it only worsens the problem
@@caralho5237 *You are only announcing* the logical extension of an unfounded presumption. You cannot know the extent to which pub league ACL injuries correlate to playing on what amounts to a soggy potato field, simply because they're not as properly documented as they are in feeder leagues and academy programmes. You would want your presumption to be conclusively established though, before you follow it through to its logical conclusion-if men are categorically resistant to ACL injury from playing on an imperfect surface, women should have categorical right of first refusal to a well-groomed pitch.
I don't think pitch quality is anywhere near as big a factor as the physical and anatomical differences between men and women. Top women's team's like Arsenal ladies have way better pitches and training facilities than most non-League men's teams, but there is still an ACL injury epidemic at Arsenal and other major women's teams that is not seen at non-league men's level to anywhere near the same degree. My friends, teamates, and I have all played hundreds of matches on terrible pitches, from waterlogged mudbaths, dry, hard, bumpy and and uneven mud and grass, frozen solid and bumpy grass, snow, sand based astro-turf, water based field hockey turf, 3G rubber crumb, futsal courts, wooden gym floors, asphalt school playgrounds, etc, and we did not see an epidemic of ACL injuries like that seen in elite women's football.
3:39 - the collagen point is interesting. i wonder if there is a difference between players on birth control vs not. A solution could be anabolic steroids to decrease knee laxity. Alternatively, since Rxfp1 and Rxfp2 have a protein similar structure to insulin, perhaps localized insulin knee injections over time could be used.
I watched this video Saturday night, and have bow legs, which made me think the risk of injury for me (as a male) is much reduced. I fractured my knee Sunday morning from a non-impact injury during a game. What are the chances?
There have been other published study on this. Its not a unknown, its all down to the knee angle caused by the wider hips on women. The answer would well be boots that are slightly externally rolled - why knows
I´ve heard that the football is also too big/too heavy as it´s the same ball that men play with. Could put too much stress on the athlete´s joints along with other factors, such as bad landings after jumping and too much overloading of the joints and muscles, leading to more joint tears, particularly in the knee, as you use your legs mostly in football Reducing the size and weight of the ball, could also lead to more entertaining matches. Most of the matches I´ve watched, the goalkeeper either opts to pass it out from the back, following a goalkick, rather than kicking it up the field, as it´s ineffective in women´s football. When it does happen, that the goalkeeper attempts to kick it up the field, the ball hardly ever crosses the halfway line. With a lighter and smaller ball, there would be more headed battles in and around the halfway line and more battles to win the ball back following these headed battles, much like the men´s game.
Precisely, they’re more fragile than mens players. That’s why the womens game probably needs some changes to prevent serious injuries. Maybe shorter games or something
so why in tennis, basket and other high-intense sports which a lot of womens plays, there isn't this frecuency on these injuries? The prevetious, studies and methods of training is always important..
@@marinacabanes Because there is, where did you draw this data from? Female tennis and basketball players tend to get injured more often and more significantly e.g. (Women's National Basketball Association athletes had a higher overall game-related injury rate (Women's National Basketball Association athletes had a higher overall game-related injury rate (24.9 per 1000 athlete exposures; 95% confidence interval, 22.9-26.9; P < .05 DOI:10.1177/0363546505285383)
@@RedRavenX1 i am talking about acl injuries, which are the worst an athlete can suffer. This frequency is only in football, in other sports is notthat high. i think it requers a lot of investment, studies and more methos to adapt the mens training to the womens body
You think? No, you know and you've stated a fact, but it goes deeper than that. We as men should not be second guessing our physical superiority. These same women want us to protect them, right? Then they need to start acknowledging and putting respect on the truth. Men are physically, actively, mentally stronger than women.
Football like many sports have evolved to test the athleticism of men. The size of the pitch, the length of time played, ball size, goal size etc. All push the limitations of what men can do. Testosterone not only gives men stronger muscles and size a advanced. It also gives better repair times than women in-between matches and training etc. So if we took a scientific approach to the woman's game, and and trialed pitch sizes and match times etc we might better optimum ranges, that would reduces these injuries
I’m battling an ACL for three months now and I hear it might take a longer while before I can get to play again or maybe at worse never get to play again. What’s worse is I don’t know what cheaper treatment or therapy to use. I’m so devastated watching and not playing. I hate myself for picking up this injury. 🤦🏻♂️
Hope you make a full recovery and can play again. My advice having had many injuries is not to rush back too soon. I was impatient with some of my injuries before and made them worse by trying to return too soon. Follow the advice of your doctor and physio if you have one.
@@Coach-Gautam_Gambhir Maybe more people would actually watch women's games if that happened! Quick lunch break on a Wednesday afternoon, popping by the ground to watch a fun little shootout. Not bad!
@@choiyongjaethe game time actually is already less since var is introduced. The PL for example, in these last few seasons had an average of 55 minutes where the ball was played.
At 5:42, I imagine he said, or maybe meant ‘overtrain’ and not “overload”. Overload is an essential stressor in the development of tissue strength development. Appropriate overload should actually be encouraged in training, they are not the same thing.
Maybe current players are from the "pre-popularity era" and newcoming footballers who have grown recently in a more professionalised environment will have less injuries
We want to train female athletes using techniques that were designed for male bodies We need more women in football management cause they understand how the womans body behaves, how we recover, and how to work with the female body...
I don't buy the Academy since 10-argument. Women instead get's to debut for their national tams when they are like 15-16 which should make them into prime athletes faster(Depending on the standard of womens football). There are also tons of late bloomers who never played academy football and still became pros and has had zero ACL-problems. Especially african players whosé academies isn't always top notch to begin with.
You just have to look at amateur and non-league mens football to see that they don't have the same incidence of ACL problems, despite playing on much worse pitches than the elite women. The problem is most likely due to physical or anatomical issues.
Most importantly: women are built different. They can carry and birth children, which is incredibly difficult and therefore they got wider pelvises. This ties into point 3 of the knee structures. You can train them from an early age just like the boys all you want. In the end, biology always wins.
*sigh* And you were doing so well before you ruined your own argument. Why are you making conclusions before gathering evidence. That is some poor science.
The investment for the men's sport is because the revenue is higher. Women's football is behind in quality even from a non pro footballer level and much more from a pro level. It might not set well with a lot of people, but our predesposition is higher for football, where as women have an edge on other things such as archery or gimnastics. So there is a difference from starting point. That difference can be seen in the performance. And the the difference in performance, means less money. Thus, increasing the gap. You can increase investment on Women's sports, but hopefully not at the expenses of men's sports. Work on the financing of it. Make it unique, not subsidize. Female tenis and male tenis are quite diferent, but both are atractive to viewers and have a high quality. We should aim for that.
It happens because the game is not designed for women. It woul be needed to have shorter games, smaller pitch and smaller goal for it to be adequate for women
There’s generally loads of ACL injuries in football, it’s the risk you take when playing it. It’s horrible, but it’s basic science with other factors like boots, wider pelvises and strength of muscles and ligaments. It’s not about how players are treated as ‘second class’, the women’s game is growing and the research will grow with it!
Well, the point is just that there is less research done. this is a health issue as well, even outside of sports. the point is that there is less economic incentive to research for woman. a "systemic" issue, if you will. it does not imply a conscious choice to not research woman. You are absolutely right that this issue will be fixed with grown interest in the sport! However, the cause of the lack of research is woman being treated as second class. Even if purely for economic reasons. Just see how many biographies or history books spend time describing the life of ordinary, poor people. most book talk about the rich and powerful, and ordinary citizens are second class citizens in history.
@@nicolaspadula9791 agree there, has been neglected at certain times in history but nowadays a lot more people are tuning in to the sport. Even before the Euros, I’d say.. the last World Cup I remember is when I started to tune in and still watch the odd game here and there. Not a super fan by any means, but it’s definitely getting more traction and like I said, the research will grow and advance greatly in the next 20 years or so. It also for the most part, has its own audience and I can see that booming in the future. For me though, ACL injuries in general are just a problem in football. Was a career ending injury 30/25 years ago and that’s changed, although the players are never quite the same after one let alone multiple. It’s about putting that risk to a minimum and seeing what they can do in the recovery stages. Obviously there is biological and genetic differences too, I think the quality of football in the WSL is decent, more than people let on.. but if you put Haaland in there and Kerr or Miedema in the Premier League, you’re going to get two different outcomes and that’s not to put them down by any means, they’re both fantastic players in their own right but there is definitely that physical element and difference that we can’t ignore. That being said though, the boot comment shocked me and I can definitely see why that plays a part in it, can’t imagine how uncomfortable it would be for certain players and of course that’s going to attribute to some injuries. It would be like not expecting a few men to get injuries if they wore women’s shoes/boots! Never knew that, definitely needs sorting and hopefully, alongside growth of the game and research they can come to a better conclusion and understanding!
Never had this as a male player. But had to give up Football after i suffered a thigh muscle tear for like 7th time in 2 years my main problem was i never felt that at the heat of moment(match) and next day i couldn't walk. I tried, i trained but could get my form back. If everything went right that time i would have gave trials for Ac Milan as they picked me while they had a week long campaign here in Nepal.
I've always been a fan of making the goals for women just a tiny bit smaller. If we're acknowledging the differences, men, especially keepers, can be way bigger to fill out the goal, shouldn't that be reflected in the goal size?
Smaller goalposts, smaller pitches and shorter games need to be looked into, to preserve the intensity of the games and save the health of women playing these sports.
The comments here😢 It’s a scandal that it’s not been looked at before now - never mind the pros, it’s affecting the grass roots game. Women’s boots are a positive step, but the urgently needed research will take time. While this is happening, I wonder if there’s a protective strapping or other equipment that might help?
@@eskeeeet Relative to 140 yrs, sure, but this isn’t a new problem and women’s football hasn’t just been invented. The women’s World Cup’s been going since the 90s and my neighbour played for Stockport Ladies from her teens and she’s 50 now.
So let me get this straight: you consult health specialists in the area of ACL surgery who clearly outline the reasons to be of physiological and environmental nature, only to conclude by yourself at the end of the video, that the main issue has to be environmental which is caused by a lack of funding in the women's game? Now let's suppose that were to be in fact the truth: biology has absolutely nothing or little to do with it and better funding will lead to better training equipment, better health professionals caring for the athletes resulting in heightened athleticism and quicker recovery times. More importantly, if we have identified that to be the issue could we solve it? No, we can't and that's simply because we can't grab extra funding out of thin air for a sport fewer people (both men and women btw) prefer to watch. I really dislike the clearly politically charged closing statement to suggest female soccer athletes are viewed as "second class citizens" to their male counterparts in that regard just because they have less capital to use across all areas of their sport's infrastructure compared to what is the most commercialized sport on the planet. By that same logic, badminton players are second class citizens compared to male football professionals because they don't have the same resources to allocate to their medical staff and treatments. Women's football is underfunded because it is an inferior product. To suggest that that is solely due to sexism is an incredible disservice and insult to so many people that watch different male and female sports for a multitude of different reasons and absolutely does not line up with the data derived from market research, that clearly indicates, that more men actually watch women's sports than women do. If you want, go ahead and fund all sports equally for the sake of equality. I'm not sure where all the extra money is supposed to come from though.
@@futweekendleague481 If your attention span has devolved so much, that you consider reading two paragraphs too big a task that's fine by me buddy I just don't really get why you feel the need to let me know like anyone cares that specifically you "ain't reading ALL THAT"
You're exactly right. Women are simply biologically different to men and TIFO don't have the stones to speak the truth because some loony will take offence and accuse them of whatever ism or phobia is popular.
@@JuliusBriggs For woman football to receive more funding, they need more fans but you already know majority of fans want to watch male football instead so woman's football will most probably never get more funding
Variability e.g. Cross-training. Female or male you need to vary your training mode. No better addition than Aqua Fitness & Rehab . So many positives. Above all helps to improve/build muscle balance. If I hadn't become an Aqua Fitness Coach I'd be crippled. So looking for rehab? Come down to the Caribbean. See you soon!
What can be done about it is extremely easy, but the Feminists at FIFA will never do it, because of their desperation to signal that men and women are equal. Reduce the game time to 50 or 60 minutes, significantly shorten the pitch, cap the amount of games played a season to 30 or 40 games and eliminate as much contact as possible like fouling.
I think the reason behind ACL injuries difference between men and women is obvious, it's not because the men get involved in academies and train from younger age .. since most of the world don't have professional academies like the ones in UK or Europe and still don't have that much of ACL injuries , it might be a factor but it is a small one , the main reason is the biological difference between men and women , with more research I'm sure they will get a solution but I hope they don't go with the easy one and call a guy a woman to decrease the numbers of injuries 😂.
"Like the ones in UK or Europe" ??? Bruh the best one's are in South America. I'm guessing you're from the U.S. Every country ranke in FIFA have solid professional academies.
@@BhBc8f8 I know that a lot and maybe most of the talented players comes from South America, but actually I'm not sure if the academies their are professional in terms of eating habits and physical training for young players like under 15 , but the whole point is that most of the world even the ranked by FIFA countries don't have that professional systems , in some countries players reach 25 and still treated like a 19 years player in European leagues.
@@marcocmexat So you're just making assumptions without doing any research then? In Men's Football there's something called a youth setup plan or England's version of it, the Elite player performance plan which is way too complicated to explain rn but basically is what sets standards for youth academies depending on what the clubs can afford. Most countries do have this system, some are obviously better than others but they do still have the system in place since the 90's. Women's football however don't, hence why scientists theorize the link to the lack of tissue devolepment in pro females today. And the countries that lack this developmental infrastructure in those cultures still encourage their young boys to go into sports seeing as it's more lucrative world wide while the young girls are encouraged to focus more on their health and looks to attract financially secure males as evolution would dictate.
The popularity and attention Women's football is now receiving is not equal to the infrastructure thats in place (which obviously takes a long time to build up). The women's game wasn't ready for this sudden boom. At least now there is data being gathered and adjustments being made such as modified boots.
People don’t wanna accept but both genders are built different for different roles in life. We save a lot by each doing what their physicals can handle.
@@obukohwoogheneakpobo3011 Where did I say infrastructure is the only thing? If there was the same infrastructure, we'd talk about, say, 2x as often as in men's football.
Ive heard lots of reasons why the acl injuries have been happening. One of the reasons is the way the games are refereed, another is the way training is organised. Quite frankly, the refs let too much go. Ive seen two footed tackles from behind go unpunished
Exactly, Football was a game created by men, for men. So it was always gonna be hard for women to adapt to the physical toll the sport puts on the body overtime. The womens game should have some changes to ensure that less of them sustain serious injuries, such as shorter games for example. The amount of injuries in the womens game is pretty alarming but expected
@@NotThatJojjoYou need a history lesson. Your comments keep falling but I can catch you. Men are built to be more robust...... FACT. Original football origins are very violent and a man's sport....FACT. You are welcome.
My fiancé used to play for the leicester academy. She played with a few of the lionesses. Her career was cut short by an ACL tear and then another one shortly after returning to playing. She’s now waiting for her 6th or 7th ACL operation and will need a double knee replacement when she’s 30/in her early 30’s and possibly a hip replacement shortly after that for where she’s had to accommodate her weak knees. Bear in mind, she’s only 24
Yikes!
I think you mean fiancée bro. Rough story, hope shes alright
Off!
wish her a speedy recovery
Most Male Footballers are taken down before they hit 20 by inury and never make it... you jsut never hear about them since they never "make it" for health reasons. Its not enough to be talented in sports like these... ou need to be made of stones. It is obvious though that genetics will always prevail depsite what we believe in. Takes one tough mind to make yourself stronger if you are already at a disadvantage.
Arsenal women's team have had an injury crisis I have never seen before. Having like 5 players all on ACL injury is insane
Miedema and Mead, both our best attacking players injured at about the same time has really hurt our chances. Hope they recover well
The thing about Arsenal is, that they always try & walk it in.
@@aliali-ce3yf The IT Crowd😂😂
Damn even that's unheard in men's football
@@luyandzabavukiledlamini4693 It's been insane for that team this seaoson, losing their best players all to ACL injuries
Just had my acl and meniscus repaired last year, recovery sucks but it's so much better and faster these days thanks to advancements in medical tech. 30+ years ago those injuries ended many footballers careers.
What country did you do it? Mine is same but UK wait time is ridiculous for surgery
@@thelonesoldier4518 I got mine at the Zambrano Hospital in Monterrey Mexico, we have great doctors here. It only took two weeks to schedule my surgery after consultation. My doctor Javier Garza specializes in knee joints with 35 years operating athletes. I went back to the gym and surfing in just 6 months, it changed my life. 🥹
@@RaulEdu33 happy for you bro Congratulations.
I've had mine reconstructed and never played since.
@ranndino I also decided to never play football again, the risk/reward isn't worth it. 😐
I played academy football for Mamelodi Sundowns here in South Africa and when I was 18 I tore my ACL and when I recovered I was just never the same. There was a huge mental block that I couldn't get over, that was my first serious injury and I just developed this fear of getting injured and I stopped playing as passionately as I used too. I just couldn't move as fast as I wanted and I no longer could explode as I could before getting injured (I played as an ATM and my strongest trait was burst ball carries) after tearing my ACL for the 2nd time on the same leg I just had to quit because it was just never meant to be. This is the main reason I don't think I could watch my daughter play football.
that's bad i really feel for you but wish you all the best
That's bad, ncese😢
7 times more likely is massive. Hopefully more funding and interest in the Women's game will mean that future generations are better supported at younger ages to help with this. I'd love to see more content like this!
Yeah maybe if we pay them more money we will speed up evolutionary biology and they’ll hurt their knees less 👍
Be nice if they actually put more effort in the biology (wider hips = straighter legs for example) it was a passing comment. rather than having “luck” as number 1 😂😂😂.
@@Daniboi971well to be fair, luck is a big part of whether any player (men or women) sustains a serious injury. Some players are just simply straight up unlucky and sustain career-ending injuries.
Obviously the biological side is more important, but there was nothing wrong with him mentioning that
Are you braindead? It's the physical differences. Funding won't change this.
how much are you paying out of your pocket for"the womens game"?
Its kinda funny that in basketball new generation guys tend to get more injury prone bcs the doctors said played too much competitive games in the aau system. But having less games when younger made women footballers more injury prone.
The landing stuff is very real, theres a lot of that breakdown on how to land after a jump could avoid injuries. Check out comparison of landing from westbrook and derrick rose.
The AAU/HS to NCAA to NBA environment for men's basketball is a situation more akin to concerns about Pedri for Barcelona which is injury by overuse.
Rooney is also a prime example of overuse, he lost his pace in his mid 20s after giving every game his all on the senior level for a near decade
An ACL injury hampers a football player's career, even applies to all athletes, it's really crazy.
Poor women players are missing out on hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in future earnings!!
@@Th3UprightMan well, that is life. Sometimes we miss out on chances trough no fault of our own. Some people could have been president, but shot by the CIA. Some would criticise the queen of england, and get in a car accident, and others have an injury preventing them from playing proffesional sports.
Tough one for NBA players with all the quick cuts and intense short sprints, plays a big part mentally when they try to regain their previous athleticism. Look at Derrick Rose, took him 2 years ro return cuz he wasnt mentally secure with that knee after the ACL tear.
Thank you for making this video. Unfortunately many of these players won't be physically ready for the FIFA womens world cup in July 2023. ACL injuries are affecting players at the grassroot as well, which needs to be talked about as well.
Women are way too soft
wouldn't the factor of having wider hips (larger torque through the joint, elongated muscles, ligaments and tendons) play a factor on the stability, strength, placiticty, and stiffness of the ACL in woman?
The wider hips point is part of the reason for the straight/knock knee issue they mention at 2:40 - although they strangely somewhat skipped over that point & didn’t really explain how the naturally wider hips can lead to it
@@alexgrant191 that’s true my bad.
It’s actually not as high a risk factor as reported. It’s where the research was focused earlier in the last decade but more recently data shows that ‘Q angle’ is an non-significant contributor to injury risk. More likely the later points about “everything being smaller” and preconditioning being the bigger issues.
I bet that's a big part of it. Look at the elbows as well in women and if racket sports have any injury data. Muscle mass around the joints also is hugely important to support. Then I think sheer genetic difference eg the material is probably not as robust as in men due to selection over millenia.
@@stevemorton546 well, any contributor is another one. To save a ship from sinking, you need to fix every hole. Not just the big ones
Having wider pelvises is actually the main factor. I'm surprised this wasn't mentioned first. He put "luck" as the #1 reason 😅
They barely mentioned the biological differences
@@caonima3372 Which is weird 😅
Honestly it’s a joke, I read like 5 years ago that women will get more of those injuries because of that. Nowadays people involved in girls football are lobbying that it’s because of less funding and facility’s etc blah blah blah 🙄🙄😮💨
@@TrillBill no you dont understand, its never the biological differences, its always "society" "opportunities" etc etc
@@seemourbutts6679I mean it's not as if that isn't also true
I was listening to a podcast about biomechanics and movement patterns of athletes the other day. I won’t pretend to be an expert, but there’s a big importance on strength of the arch, ankle alignment/height and “bow-setting” while running and during changes of direction that play a part in creating healthy movements for athletes. Modern athletes are moving in an unhealthy way that’s putting way more pressure on the inside of the knee leading to the acl epidemic in sports. I’m more worried about the rising injury tally in young athletes. Would be cool to see this talked about more too. 👍
I know I heard in a podcast that in basketball, the peak age for athletes there actually moved back to like 20's - 24 as colleges out there train these guys up to their peak when playing for them so that when they reach NBA, their body has been strained so much that they can't reach the same jump height they were getting in college.
I do wonder if by making athletes train and play so much at such a young age, they wear away their body too much. I do also wonder if bad running habits are learnt as they learning a technique while their body is still growing and so it mismatches their body or if it's a trained trait to help them look after the ball better (e.g. Sterling and Hazard's style of running)
@@joshbrown2217 Thanks for the reply, that’s some great input about overtraining youth and establishing poor movement patterns at a young age. “Overuse injuries” is a pretty serious epidemic in sports, but it maybe overuse of poor mechanics that creates wear and tear on the body.
What’s the podcast you were listening to? Sounds informative
What podcast was this please? Would be interested in listening
My prayers go to any player, male or female whom sustain ACL injuries ❤
Happened to me years ago. I retired from the game after that.
@@nirmalbiswas8785 Hope you’re doing well my friend. I imagine the mental implications are far more painful than the physical one’s
The pain was so severe that I somehow recovered after the surgery. I told him (Doctor) to chop that part because I can't handle at that time.
Prayers ? Chill bro it's just an injury, they not dead
Prayers? If that works don't go to the doctors
Genetics and your biology is one of the worst things about injuries.
I remember a commentator for this Barcelona game with Raphina (brother of Thiago) talk about how they both have knee problems, and it’s genetic. Both have a predisposition to getting injuries, and it’s clear that throughout both of these two siblings careers they have been injured many many times. Yeah, a failing body that isn’t even your fault because you do everything like how you’re suppose to has gotta be one of the worst feelings.
Another sensational example are the Bender twins. Sven was injury prone prior to turning 25 and Lars setbacks followed after 25. They both retired on the same day!
In the same way genetics determine your ability as a footballer. Genetics impact‘literally’ everything mate.
I think some players need to have their training adapted to them specifically.
My cousin played professionaly in Mexico recently and suffered an ACL injury which has had to leave her out of the game perhaps for good.
It's interesting that you guys touch the subject of anatomy because I believe it's possible that the training sessions are also male anatomy based and that may be cause for wear and tear on women.
I can't recall if it was Menotti or someone else, who stated that footballers used to be trained similar to race horses and that caused injury and poor performance. When that changed, so did the game.
Maybe there's something we can still learn from that.
Good point. Sadly, it's not just in football.
Women's health issues just have less funding and research compared to men
@@Timbone07 How did you come to that conclusion?
@@samkelorashuza5949 Its not my conclusion.
It is simply a fact admitted by medical experts.
Most leaders who direct funding are usually male.
It is not a surprise.
@@samkelorashuza5949
The fact that in the past, all medical research was done on men and only men.
For example, autism and adhd symptoms are diagnosed still to this day by what is typically shown in boys, this leads to girls having a much lower diagnosis rate. Current research I'd say is pretty balanced when it comes to new things, but we still haven't gone back and retraced for women.
@@amadandearbhte4318 Thats some weird logic right there
It could just be that autism and ADHD is much more common in boys, and it seems to be the case
Thank you for doing this, finally there is a great and infleuncial youtuber reporting on this issue. There should be more awareness to prevent these injuries. Your channel is so great and doing such great things for the football community. Ur a legend
I do think there are another 2 factors which was missed.
1. The grounds they play on are not always the best quality and so there is more chance of trauma being added to the knee when collisions with another player or landing on the ground. This along with the fact that as the game is still in it's infancy of professionalism, the players tend to go in harder on challenges and less gets called as they want the game to be seen as more physical than the men's game (as it helps overcome a lot of the stereotypes).
2.
As the pool of players (talented players) is smaller as the game is still growing, a lot of the talented players have to play a lot of games in congested time tables and so there is less time to rest and heal. I also think this is why ACL's are rising in the men's game as they are being made to play more minutes.
It has to be biological and not what you staed. players in lower leagues and sunday leagues dont have the best fields or technology but dont suffer injuries as the PRo womens. also the pool of talent is limited in high schoolboys but you dont see these injuries
@Josh Brown dafak are you talking about?I live in Bangladesh, a 3rd world country.The grounds here are the poorest in the world since the govt doesn’t care about football here.And our pros barely get any injury because of the poor nature of the grounds.
@@limbeboy7 I mean it can be a factor of both. I never said it wasn't biological, but the pitch quality and pool of talent probably also play a factor
and in regards to the high school point, you have to remember we're talking about pros who will run more and play at a higher intensity while also playing more official matches. High school kids won't push themselves or play at such an intensity which would put them at risk of such injuries.
@@footballstar6073 Yeah but as you said, your gov doesn't car about football, so I doubt the quality is there, which means the intensity at which they play at isn't that intense. My point was that as they are pros playing at a pretty high level, they're going to be straining their bodies to reach those levels. If they start doing that on bad pitches and playing 90 mins in a congested schedule, their bodies are obviously at risk of injuries and strains which could lead to more serious injuries. You don't get that at lower league football.
@@joshbrown2217 where do you get the statistics that highschool kids wont push themselves as much? are you just guessing?
Now this explains why most players today play at the highest level even in their late 30s, the sports science and behind the scenes logistics has vastly vastly improved, won't be surprised in the 2050s players playing at the top level into their mid 40s
Not only that but tackles are much less brutal and better refereed compared to 30+ years ago
Yes players like Pele Maradona already left their prime at just 31 although they were still physically strong but their bodies cannot sustain more injuries because of the brutal tackles at that time!!
@@gourmondal5812 what? Pele and maradona both played till 37.
@@TubbysWorld4413 i mean left the highest stage of football at 31
But both retired at 37 tho
wait, what?? That's not happening at all, unless you're referring to female football or some other sport (in which case, I have no idea).
Football players still perform best around 25 y.o. At 30 they ALL have begun their decline. The difference is nowadays there's access to much better nutrition, training, recovery sessions, etc. And top league players can easily afford it. But a player being physically better in his 30's than his 20'... I can't think of an example.
I was wondering about this a couple of months ago when I saw crazy numbers on the amount of women that was suffering from ACL injuries. A lot of women will miss the World Cup because of knee injuries.
The illustrations on this one were absolute perfection. Congratulations to the arts team!
Other than the "7x more likely to rupture ACL" stat, the most surprising thing to me from the video is that Woman are playing in boots crafted for men. Shoes have differences in men's and women's sizes. How is this not the same for sporting footwear?
Knee health is probably the most looked over aspect of the modern training. People will train literally everything else but neglect the chain of ligaments and tendons in the knee it's self. 7 ACL operations on my own knees for anyone that think they have more experience on the matter 😅 😅
Took 6 to figure it out and the 7th was on the other leg from a direct impact injury.
ATG kneesovertoes
This comment section cracks me up. They literally brought on a knee repair specialist who specifically explains that data on women's injuries and recovery is badly lacking, but apparently RUclips commenters are onto something he's not about female anatomy. Get a grip.
They also all go on about "women and men are different duh huh",
Like yeah? No one says otherwise, in fact, the freaking video we are watching right now says so too.
It's incredible the amount of stupidity we see here.
@@NotThatJojjo Lots of people say otherwise. Hence the need to protect womens sports.
Don't women also play and train more often on artificial turf which has a harder surface and puts more strain on the knee?
Professional level women in Europe play on the same quality pitches as their male counterparts. It’s all more down to physical differences
@@NoCluYT A lot of the women's sides have the home stadium as the training ground for the men's or higher level youth teams which lends to a theoretical rutted field situation in rainier weeks when compared to the men's team who gets to play in the much bigger home stadium.
Edit: In good weather or early in the season, the pitch is probably as comparable. But it'll eventually become a disparity with rainy seasons which in much of Europe is winter.
This was a concern at the 2015 World Cup in Canada.
@@Eibarwoman Still, grassroots and non-league men play on worse pitches than elite women, and the high incidence of ACL injuries seen in women's football is not seen in the lower level men's game. So, it would seem that the biggest factors in the ACL epidemic in women's football are either physical or anatomical issues.
@@sebfox2194 There does seem to be some structural issues that are linked to estrogen itself. The best source of this would come from the realm of transgender medicine where fairly frequently reports of modest reduction in height (as much as 5 cm in particularly tall trans women, but usually 1 to 3 cm when reported) and foot size reduction (maybe a size to a size and a half at most) are reported with estrogen therapy in transgender women from ligament and muscle size changes.
It wouldn't be surprising if the combination of shorter, tighter ligaments and playing surface conditions lends to an increased risk of ACL tears.
Edit: Added details of the dimensional shifts reported by estrogen which seems to be fairly potent at altering the structural composition of soft tissue and ligaments. There may also be other factors I haven't come across such as the football shoes and more that apply.
I have a theory on why women are suffering significantly more ACL injuries compared to men. It will be left field for many and refuted I'm sure, but here goes. I believe it's down to drug use, specifically a specific type of antibiotic. Fluoroquinolone antibiotics are incredibly powerful broad spectrum drugs which are frequently over and incorrectly prescribed. More often than not they're prescribed for infections of the water works, renal etc. Women as a ratio are prescribed 5 times more than men, mainly due to women almost elusively being the ones who suffer from these ailments. They are usually a sledgehammer for a walnut treatment. Unfortunately many recipients of these drugs don't realise newly acquired symptoms in the days weeks or months after ceasing their use are down to side effects of these drugs. Most fails to recognise the association of this drug to their new symptoms, symptoms comprising of a bible length list of issues. Such issue include muscular-skeletal issues, collagen degradation, metal ion chelation, mitochondrial/dna issues. Essentially for many, these drugs wreck your body, but because the damage they cause is often insidious and progressive it is usually not linked back to this drugs use. Dr's are ignorant to their dangers from never having been taught about their problems, and or the medical professionals failing to fully understand and recognise the problems. It would be very interesting to issue anonymous questionnaires to all male and female player detailing their previous prescribed medication and their injuries and see if any correlations occur. I'm suspicious that many of the women's acl injuries are linked to this antibiotics' use. I know many who've suffered severely as a result of this toxic for some class of drugs.
Edit- incidentally the ratio of women to men suffering adverse reactions to these drugs is coincidentally the same as the ratio in the number being prescribed 5:1. Therefore more women are prescribed this drug than men, more women suffer adverse reactions than men, plus factor in the metabolic differences between the sexes and interesting conclusions could be found.
The physiological point is valid in another role in the world. Military, not acl but femur fractures. The stresses of weight has lead to fractures of femur which is a medical emergency due to proximity to major artery along the length of femur. It’s not given the proper exposure because it’s a example of difference of body. Eventually someone will step forward and explain why this will be a cause of many dq from some military roles.
Would love to see more videos on womens football, history and tactics!
There's not that much history, mate.
@@ranndino 😭
History and tactics 💀
It is basic science, it is about the strength of the muscles and the ligaments.
While the other factors in this video do warrant alot of Merit, it is surely obvious for everyone to see that what youre saying is the main issue here
@@michaelkinende5790
No, set your ego aside and see FACTS ONLY.
If you can’t accept facts then the problem is YOU
@@cwazy345because there exists scientific problems that don’t require research to know the answers to. Hence, called basic science.
Women are indeed more prone to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries compared to men, particularly in certain sports such as soccer and basketball. While the exact reasons for this disparity are not entirely understood, several factors are believed to contribute to the higher incidence of ACL injuries in women:
Anatomic differences: Women typically have wider hips, resulting in a greater angle between the thighbone (femur) and shinbone (tibia). This increased angle, known as the Q angle, can put more stress on the ACL, making it more vulnerable to injury.
Hormonal factors: Hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle may influence ligament laxity. Increased laxity can make the ACL more susceptible to injury.
Neuromuscular control: Women often exhibit differences in neuromuscular control compared to men. This includes factors such as muscle strength imbalances, reduced hamstring-to-quadriceps strength ratios, and altered landing mechanics during activities like jumping and cutting. These factors can contribute to improper joint stabilization and increased ACL injury risk.
Ligament size and strength: Research suggests that women may have smaller and weaker ACLs compared to men, which could make them more susceptible to injury.
Training techniques: Differences in training programs and techniques between men and women, especially during adolescence, may play a role. Historically, women's sports have received less attention, resulting in potentially inadequate training and conditioning programs. Insufficient preparation can increase the risk of ACL injuries.
It's important to note that while women have a higher incidence of ACL injuries, this does not mean that all women are prone to such injuries, nor does it imply that men are completely immune. Understanding these risk factors can help guide injury prevention strategies, such as targeted strength training, neuromuscular training, and education on proper landing and cutting techniques.
we are not built the same
Same has been notable in the AFLW in Australia
Also a classic injury for netballers
@cobedizzle what's the link between fame and injury?
@@1882Stu so no link then. Thanks.
Yeah glad someone mentioned this. It's why women shouldn't be playing AFL.
@@nath-wp7xp really???? Why?
I don’t know about women’s sports in the US (really just the WNBA) but there are quite a few players who suffer ACL tears, like Carson Wentz, Kyler Murray, Von Miller, Tom Brady, Bill Gramatica, Rob Gronkowski, as well as Teddy Bridgewater, just to name a few that have happened over the past 15 years in the NFL. Derrick Rose, Kyle Lowry, as well as 95 more players who have suffered a torn ACL in the NBA since 1980. Recently in hockey you have Mason Shaw, who suffered his fourth tear (knees probably are like Kaká’s), lIlya Mikheyev, Luke Kunin who has had it twice, to name a few. In baseball, there is Rhys Hoskins, who sadly plays for my Phillies, Ronald Acuña Jr., Royce Lewis has torn it twice, Gavin Lux, Adalberto Mondesi, Kyle Schwarber, Marcus Stroman, Andrew McCutchen, and more. All of that was just in the last 8 or so years, and that’s not even all. You can play on a torn ACL, as the hamstrings provide support to the knee, but if that goes and you haven’t gotten ACL reconstruction surgery, good luck staying fast. Mickey Mantle played nearly his entire HoF career on a torn ACL because they didn’t know how to treat it in the 50s
Great video. Takes biology into account and realistic ways with how we can make it safer for women.
Reduce the play time and make the field smaller maybe??
They play on the stadium than men, build stadiums only for womens is impossible, reduce time is the point though
Yes and smaller goals and ighter balls and also replace all the women with men.
They won't be able to get the same pay as men then
@@NostalgiNorden the replacement is coming, you can be sure of that!
@@NostalgiNorden well nowadays you can simply identify yourself as a woman and play women's sports. That would solve all the problems I guess.
As a Turkish (former) journalist, I am impressed by your exhaustive research on this piece. The storytelling is top-notch. Thanks.
Women's football playing time and frequency should be reduced. Surely that will reduce serious injury incidents.
The main problem is the "Q-Angle", which is greater in the legs of women than in men. This is due to wider hips. The higher the Q-Angle, the more likely is an ACL injury.
We got a lot of scientists in the comments
You got a problem with that?
@@Anticommunism99Ikr we are so lucky
Fellow commenters, I fully understand the sensitivity to much of society ignoring gender differences, but did you watch the rest of the video past the “Luck” portion?
The rest of the video focuses on the unique biological challenges faced by women, as well as potential solutions to those issues.
This is so interesting. Amazing the medical knowledge we have in the modern world. Holy balls.
*I would like* to have seen them address the significantly lower standard of pitch that women are forced to play-and especially practice-upon. The situation is improving but the gains to be realised from female athletes building fit-for-purpose biomechanics from an earlier stage of life can be entirely undone by the disparity in the pitches they are provided.
That’s exactly part of the reason Megan Rapinoe hurt her knee in 2015. The practice field in Honolulu was a mess and holding water after storms. Pinoe slipped and tore her ACL.
They’re not “forced” to do anything. They can just stop their hobby and do something else. The demand for women’s football just isn’t there, deal with it and stop crying. Men all over the world play on horrible pitches as well and way worse than those women.
All of those things are damn near irrelevant. There are MANY men's football leagues who play in fields that look mountainous to say the least and they dont suffer nearly as many ACL tears. Women's bodies are weaker and not as fit for contact sports. Denying it only worsens the problem
@@caralho5237
*You are only announcing* the logical extension of an unfounded presumption. You cannot know the extent to which pub league ACL injuries correlate to playing on what amounts to a soggy potato field, simply because they're not as properly documented as they are in feeder leagues and academy programmes. You would want your presumption to be conclusively established though, before you follow it through to its logical conclusion-if men are categorically resistant to ACL injury from playing on an imperfect surface, women should have categorical right of first refusal to a well-groomed pitch.
I don't think pitch quality is anywhere near as big a factor as the physical and anatomical differences between men and women. Top women's team's like Arsenal ladies have way better pitches and training facilities than most non-League men's teams, but there is still an ACL injury epidemic at Arsenal and other major women's teams that is not seen at non-league men's level to anywhere near the same degree. My friends, teamates, and I have all played hundreds of matches on terrible pitches, from waterlogged mudbaths, dry, hard, bumpy and and uneven mud and grass, frozen solid and bumpy grass, snow, sand based astro-turf, water based field hockey turf, 3G rubber crumb, futsal courts, wooden gym floors, asphalt school playgrounds, etc, and we did not see an epidemic of ACL injuries like that seen in elite women's football.
The ladies deserve more when it comes to football.
why?
Before watching the video, let me make a guess: Q angle of hip is wider than that for males?
Exactly
Acl injury looks so painful😱
Can make a grown man cry like a baby.
@@NoCluYT lol
it's terrible
3:39 - the collagen point is interesting. i wonder if there is a difference between players on birth control vs not. A solution could be anabolic steroids to decrease knee laxity. Alternatively, since Rxfp1 and Rxfp2 have a protein similar structure to insulin, perhaps localized insulin knee injections over time could be used.
Insulin isn't a steroid tho
Anabolic steroids lmao
I watched this video Saturday night, and have bow legs, which made me think the risk of injury for me (as a male) is much reduced. I fractured my knee Sunday morning from a non-impact injury during a game. What are the chances?
There have been other published study on this. Its not a unknown, its all down to the knee angle caused by the wider hips on women.
The answer would well be boots that are slightly externally rolled - why knows
i tore my acl playing soccer a month before i turned 14. now i’m 15 and back and praying and doing everything i can so i don’t get another
Nice video. Keep up the good work.
I´ve heard that the football is also too big/too heavy as it´s the same ball that men play with. Could put too much stress on the athlete´s joints along with other factors, such as bad landings after jumping and too much overloading of the joints and muscles, leading to more joint tears, particularly in the knee, as you use your legs mostly in football
Reducing the size and weight of the ball, could also lead to more entertaining matches. Most of the matches I´ve watched, the goalkeeper either opts to pass it out from the back, following a goalkick, rather than kicking it up the field, as it´s ineffective in women´s football. When it does happen, that the goalkeeper attempts to kick it up the field, the ball hardly ever crosses the halfway line. With a lighter and smaller ball, there would be more headed battles in and around the halfway line and more battles to win the ball back following these headed battles, much like the men´s game.
But then they couldn't claim to be as good as men if they dont even follow the same rules😂
Because their bodies are not designed to withstand high-intensity physical activity?
Precisely, they’re more fragile than mens players. That’s why the womens game probably needs some changes to prevent serious injuries. Maybe shorter games or something
Tennis players are doing fine, it's a development issue
so why in tennis, basket and other high-intense sports which a lot of womens plays, there isn't this frecuency on these injuries?
The prevetious, studies and methods of training is always important..
@@marinacabanes Because there is, where did you draw this data from? Female tennis and basketball players tend to get injured more often and more significantly e.g. (Women's National Basketball Association athletes had a higher overall game-related injury rate (Women's National Basketball Association athletes had a higher overall game-related injury rate (24.9 per 1000 athlete exposures; 95% confidence interval, 22.9-26.9; P < .05 DOI:10.1177/0363546505285383)
@@RedRavenX1 i am talking about acl injuries, which are the worst an athlete can suffer. This frequency is only in football, in other sports is notthat high. i think it requers a lot of investment, studies and more methos to adapt the mens training to the womens body
I think it’s since men grow more muscle naturally we have more lean muscle to with stand more than women
You think? No, you know and you've stated a fact, but it goes deeper than that. We as men should not be second guessing our physical superiority. These same women want us to protect them, right? Then they need to start acknowledging and putting respect on the truth. Men are physically, actively, mentally stronger than women.
Thank you so much for this - it's really good information!
Just Horrible that hopefully there is a fix for this problem
Very illuminating, thank you.
Football like many sports have evolved to test the athleticism of men. The size of the pitch, the length of time played, ball size, goal size etc. All push the limitations of what men can do. Testosterone not only gives men stronger muscles and size a advanced. It also gives better repair times than women in-between matches and training etc. So if we took a scientific approach to the woman's game, and and trialed pitch sizes and match times etc we might better optimum ranges, that would reduces these injuries
I’m battling an ACL for three months now and I hear it might take a longer while before I can get to play again or maybe at worse never get to play again.
What’s worse is I don’t know what cheaper treatment or therapy to use.
I’m so devastated watching and not playing. I hate myself for picking up this injury. 🤦🏻♂️
don't hate yourself it's not your falut😔
Hope you make a full recovery and can play again. My advice having had many injuries is not to rush back too soon. I was impatient with some of my injuries before and made them worse by trying to return too soon. Follow the advice of your doctor and physio if you have one.
Instead of 90 minutes games, they should reduced it 60 minutes. Better game and safe for players.
@@Coach-Gautam_Gambhir Maybe more people would actually watch women's games if that happened! Quick lunch break on a Wednesday afternoon, popping by the ground to watch a fun little shootout. Not bad!
@@choiyongjaethe game time actually is already less since var is introduced. The PL for example, in these last few seasons had an average of 55 minutes where the ball was played.
Video was really good and helpful. Genuinely love this channel
Hopefully things get better for the women football
It's fun to watch the women's football nowadays
Especially because I'm a Manchester United fan
At 5:42, I imagine he said, or maybe meant ‘overtrain’ and not “overload”. Overload is an essential stressor in the development of tissue strength development. Appropriate overload should actually be encouraged in training, they are not the same thing.
Maybe current players are from the "pre-popularity era" and newcoming footballers who have grown recently in a more professionalised environment will have less injuries
currently writing my Dissertation on this... its incredibly hard due to the lack and poor quality of the data on women's sport
What are you studying
@@vickjr98 physiotherapy
We want to train female athletes using techniques that were designed for male bodies
We need more women in football management cause they understand how the womans body behaves, how we recover, and how to work with the female body...
An ACL injury hampers a football player's career, even applies to all athletes, it's really crazy
I don't buy the Academy since 10-argument.
Women instead get's to debut for their national tams when they are like 15-16 which should make them into prime athletes faster(Depending on the standard of womens football). There are also tons of late bloomers who never played academy football and still became pros and has had zero ACL-problems. Especially african players whosé academies isn't always top notch to begin with.
You just have to look at amateur and non-league mens football to see that they don't have the same incidence of ACL problems, despite playing on much worse pitches than the elite women. The problem is most likely due to physical or anatomical issues.
Its amazing to see this vlog. Great sharing boss. I really like this ..
Because their acls aren't as strong?... c'mon, hit me with another one. Im here all day
This has been on my mind recently.. thank you!
Reason 1. Some players are unlucky. Great analysis 🤣
Isn't bad luck the no1 cause of all accidents. It's literally what determines if a person survives driving drunk or not.
A 3 girls at my school that play soccer had ACL injuries its crazy that i see this video
Wait, you mean to tell me there are biological differences between men and women?! The shock! The scandal!
Most importantly: women are built different. They can carry and birth children, which is incredibly difficult and therefore they got wider pelvises. This ties into point 3 of the knee structures.
You can train them from an early age just like the boys all you want. In the end, biology always wins.
Bingo
*sigh* And you were doing so well before you ruined your own argument. Why are you making conclusions before gathering evidence. That is some poor science.
The investment for the men's sport is because the revenue is higher. Women's football is behind in quality even from a non pro footballer level and much more from a pro level. It might not set well with a lot of people, but our predesposition is higher for football, where as women have an edge on other things such as archery or gimnastics. So there is a difference from starting point.
That difference can be seen in the performance. And the the difference in performance, means less money. Thus, increasing the gap. You can increase investment on Women's sports, but hopefully not at the expenses of men's sports. Work on the financing of it. Make it unique, not subsidize.
Female tenis and male tenis are quite diferent, but both are atractive to viewers and have a high quality. We should aim for that.
ayyye, loving the women's football content
No one cares about women's football
It happens because the game is not designed for women. It woul be needed to have shorter games, smaller pitch and smaller goal for it to be adequate for women
There’s generally loads of ACL injuries in football, it’s the risk you take when playing it. It’s horrible, but it’s basic science with other factors like boots, wider pelvises and strength of muscles and ligaments. It’s not about how players are treated as ‘second class’, the women’s game is growing and the research will grow with it!
Well, the point is just that there is less research done. this is a health issue as well, even outside of sports. the point is that there is less economic incentive to research for woman. a "systemic" issue, if you will. it does not imply a conscious choice to not research woman. You are absolutely right that this issue will be fixed with grown interest in the sport! However, the cause of the lack of research is woman being treated as second class. Even if purely for economic reasons. Just see how many biographies or history books spend time describing the life of ordinary, poor people. most book talk about the rich and powerful, and ordinary citizens are second class citizens in history.
@@nicolaspadula9791 agree there, has been neglected at certain times in history but nowadays a lot more people are tuning in to the sport. Even before the Euros, I’d say.. the last World Cup I remember is when I started to tune in and still watch the odd game here and there. Not a super fan by any means, but it’s definitely getting more traction and like I said, the research will grow and advance greatly in the next 20 years or so. It also for the most part, has its own audience and I can see that booming in the future. For me though, ACL injuries in general are just a problem in football. Was a career ending injury 30/25 years ago and that’s changed, although the players are never quite the same after one let alone multiple. It’s about putting that risk to a minimum and seeing what they can do in the recovery stages. Obviously there is biological and genetic differences too, I think the quality of football in the WSL is decent, more than people let on.. but if you put Haaland in there and Kerr or Miedema in the Premier League, you’re going to get two different outcomes and that’s not to put them down by any means, they’re both fantastic players in their own right but there is definitely that physical element and difference that we can’t ignore. That being said though, the boot comment shocked me and I can definitely see why that plays a part in it, can’t imagine how uncomfortable it would be for certain players and of course that’s going to attribute to some injuries. It would be like not expecting a few men to get injuries if they wore women’s shoes/boots! Never knew that, definitely needs sorting and hopefully, alongside growth of the game and research they can come to a better conclusion and understanding!
Never had this as a male player. But had to give up Football after i suffered a thigh muscle tear for like 7th time in 2 years my main problem was i never felt that at the heat of moment(match) and next day i couldn't walk. I tried, i trained but could get my form back. If everything went right that time i would have gave trials for Ac Milan as they picked me while they had a week long campaign here in Nepal.
I've always been a fan of making the goals for women just a tiny bit smaller. If we're acknowledging the differences, men, especially keepers, can be way bigger to fill out the goal, shouldn't that be reflected in the goal size?
They want equality give them equality
@@danilgonsalves2296pig headed, they literally aren't as tall, how is it equal?
@@danilgonsalves2296 loooool
Smaller goalposts, smaller pitches and shorter games need to be looked into, to preserve the intensity of the games and save the health of women playing these sports.
Tifo has a video about this
very insightful video
The comments here😢
It’s a scandal that it’s not been looked at before now - never mind the pros, it’s affecting the grass roots game.
Women’s boots are a positive step, but the urgently needed research will take time. While this is happening, I wonder if there’s a protective strapping or other equipment that might help?
its like this under any video even mentioning womens football, men are incredibly insecure and frightened of women, really sad.
Not really. It’s actually normal because it’s a relatively new field for the ladies when compared to men’s football.
@@eskeeeet Relative to 140 yrs, sure, but this isn’t a new problem and women’s football hasn’t just been invented. The women’s World Cup’s been going since the 90s and my neighbour played for Stockport Ladies from her teens and she’s 50 now.
@@NotThatJojjo yes, the women's game is such a threat to the men's game.
Actually really interesting! I had no idea.
Video was really good and helpful 👍
Safety precautions k sath khelna chahye, or apna khub khayal rakhna chahye.
This Injury crisis is ridiculous and preventable!
Comment section full of incels. They are so predictable
So let me get this straight:
you consult health specialists in the area of ACL surgery who clearly outline the reasons to be of physiological and environmental nature, only to conclude by yourself at the end of the video, that the main issue has to be environmental which is caused by a lack of funding in the women's game?
Now let's suppose that were to be in fact the truth: biology has absolutely nothing or little to do with it and better funding will lead to better training equipment, better health professionals caring for the athletes resulting in heightened athleticism and quicker recovery times.
More importantly, if we have identified that to be the issue could we solve it?
No, we can't and that's simply because we can't grab extra funding out of thin air for a sport fewer people (both men and women btw) prefer to watch.
I really dislike the clearly politically charged closing statement to suggest female soccer athletes are viewed as "second class citizens" to their male counterparts in that regard just because they have less capital to use across all areas of their sport's infrastructure compared to what is the most commercialized sport on the planet.
By that same logic, badminton players are second class citizens compared to male football professionals because they don't have the same resources to allocate to their medical staff and treatments. Women's football is underfunded because it is an inferior product. To suggest that that is solely due to sexism is an incredible disservice and insult to so many people that watch different male and female sports for a multitude of different reasons and absolutely does not line up with the data derived from market research, that clearly indicates, that more men actually watch women's sports than women do.
If you want, go ahead and fund all sports equally for the sake of equality. I'm not sure where all the extra money is supposed to come from though.
I Ain't reading all that
But I'm happy for you
Or I'm sorry that happened
@@futweekendleague481 If your attention span has devolved so much, that you consider reading two paragraphs too big a task that's fine by me buddy
I just don't really get why you feel the need to let me know like anyone cares that specifically you "ain't reading ALL THAT"
You're exactly right. Women are simply biologically different to men and TIFO don't have the stones to speak the truth because some loony will take offence and accuse them of whatever ism or phobia is popular.
@@futweekendleague481 And nothing of value was lost. Now move along you bum
@@JuliusBriggs For woman football to receive more funding, they need more fans but you already know majority of fans want to watch male football instead so woman's football will most probably never get more funding
Variability e.g. Cross-training. Female or male you need to vary your training mode. No better addition than Aqua Fitness & Rehab . So many positives. Above all helps to improve/build muscle balance. If I hadn't become an Aqua Fitness Coach I'd be crippled. So looking for rehab? Come down to the Caribbean. See you soon!
What can be done about it is extremely easy, but the Feminists at FIFA will never do it, because of their desperation to signal that men and women are equal.
Reduce the game time to 50 or 60 minutes, significantly shorten the pitch, cap the amount of games played a season to 30 or 40 games and eliminate as much contact as possible like fouling.
Thank you for making this video❤
I hope this helps those at the back of the class accept that there are biological differences between the sexes that can affect performance
Pretty crazy since Dakota Kai from WWE also tore her ACL recently
I think this will disappear in the coming years as more and more "women with penises" start to get into the teams
Informative video ❤
I think the reason behind ACL injuries difference between men and women is obvious, it's not because the men get involved in academies and train from younger age .. since most of the world don't have professional academies like the ones in UK or Europe and still don't have that much of ACL injuries , it might be a factor but it is a small one , the main reason is the biological difference between men and women , with more research I'm sure they will get a solution but I hope they don't go with the easy one and call a guy a woman to decrease the numbers of injuries 😂.
"Like the ones in UK or Europe"
??? Bruh the best one's are in South America. I'm guessing you're from the U.S. Every country ranke in FIFA have solid professional academies.
@@BhBc8f8 I know that a lot and maybe most of the talented players comes from South America, but actually I'm not sure if the academies their are professional in terms of eating habits and physical training for young players like under 15 , but the whole point is that most of the world even the ranked by FIFA countries don't have that professional systems , in some countries players reach 25 and still treated like a 19 years player in European leagues.
@@marcocmexat So you're just making assumptions without doing any research then? In Men's Football there's something called a youth setup plan or England's version of it, the Elite player performance plan which is way too complicated to explain rn but basically is what sets standards for youth academies depending on what the clubs can afford. Most countries do have this system, some are obviously better than others but they do still have the system in place since the 90's. Women's football however don't, hence why scientists theorize the link to the lack of tissue devolepment in pro females today.
And the countries that lack this developmental infrastructure in those cultures still encourage their young boys to go into sports seeing as it's more lucrative world wide while the young girls are encouraged to focus more on their health and looks to attract financially secure males as evolution would dictate.
The popularity and attention Women's football is now receiving is not equal to the infrastructure thats in place (which obviously takes a long time to build up). The women's game wasn't ready for this sudden boom. At least now there is data being gathered and adjustments being made such as modified boots.
People don’t wanna accept but both genders are built different for different roles in life. We save a lot by each doing what their physicals can handle.
ah yes it was god's given right that only men play football, gtf outta here lmao
If women get a similar infrastructure as men, there'd be less ACL ruptures. That's basically what the video says.
@@md-io4tb 7x more likely is too much man to be just "more infrastructure"
The physical aspect can't be ignored
@@obukohwoogheneakpobo3011 Where did I say infrastructure is the only thing? If there was the same infrastructure, we'd talk about, say, 2x as often as in men's football.
Ive heard lots of reasons why the acl injuries have been happening. One of the reasons is the way the games are refereed, another is the way training is organised. Quite frankly, the refs let too much go. Ive seen two footed tackles from behind go unpunished
What is going on in the comment section 💀
Insecure men
@@Marz2727 men is an overstatement. These guys are like 14 or 15 and watch people like Sneako and Andrew tate
@@NoCluYT what are people saying
It is always equally funny watching incels meltdown over women. Never gets old.
@@NotThatJojjoYou play Minecraft with your sister but you sexually insult people for having a discussion.
Nice video keep up the good work
Almost like men are biologically wired to endure more physical hardship
Exactly, Football was a game created by men, for men. So it was always gonna be hard for women to adapt to the physical toll the sport puts on the body overtime. The womens game should have some changes to ensure that less of them sustain serious injuries, such as shorter games for example. The amount of injuries in the womens game is pretty alarming but expected
@@bababababababa6124 Someone needs a history lesson about football...
@@NotThatJojjoYou need a history lesson. Your comments keep falling but I can catch you. Men are built to be more robust...... FACT.
Original football origins are very violent and a man's sport....FACT.
You are welcome.