Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury prevention protocols in soccer players
a systematic review
Abstract
Introduction: Football is currently one of the most practiced sports in the world. However, it is also the one with the highest incidence of injuries, regardless of the level of play. The highest rate of injuries occurs in the lower limbs, with the knee being the most affected area. Refining even further, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are one of the most common and serious injuries in football. Therefore, it is extremely important to understand which protocols contribute to the prevention of such injuries, since this helps to promote health within the sport.
Objective: To describe training protocols in the prevention and/or rehabilitation of anterior cruciate ligament injuries in soccer players through a systematic review.
Methods: This study is a systematic literature review of significant articles on anterior cruciate ligament injuries in soccer players, which aim to describe effective therapies for preventing them. Searches were performed by five independent researchers in four databases (PubMed, LILACS, SciELO and Capes Journals), in addition to manual searches. The quality of the study was assessed using the PEDro Scale (Verhagen et al. 1998). Inclusion criteria included anterior cruciate ligament injuries, soccer players (professional or not), prevention protocols, with no restriction on the age range of participants or year of publication of the articles.
Results/Discussion: Injury prevention in football aims to improve the quality of movements to protect the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Some studies have not obtained conclusive results due to lack of participant adherence, small sample sizes or limited methodologies. However, several studies have examined the effectiveness of different methods and exercises in terms of duration and types of activities performed. Neuromuscular programs that include a variety of exercises – such as warm-ups, muscle strengthening, agility training and plyometrics – have shown positive results in improving movement technique and preventing sports injuries.
Conclusion: Research indicates that diverse protocols along with knee muscle strengthening are effective in preventing ACL injuries, although further studies are needed to detail and optimize these protocols for soccer players at different levels.
Keywords: anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), injury, soccer, football, prevention
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Copyright (c) 2025 Ana Cristina Caramello-Alencar, Leandro Sorbo, Thais Ferreira da Silva, Victor Bianchi, Gabriel Paschoalini, Luiz Peruchi, Ruth Ferreira Galduroz
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
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