INTRODUCTION: Ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) typically occur in professional football and epidemiological data about longitudinal injury development is needed.
PURPOSE: This practice-driven investigation of media-derived ACL data provides information about professional football (soccer) over 10 years.
METHOD: Injury registration was based on "kicker" sports magazine information that have been recorded over one decade in a standardized manner. Only ACL ruptures in the first German football league were included when they could be verified by a second reliable source. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III Results: Fifty-seven primary ACL ruptures were verified in the first German football league during the seasons 2007/08 to 2016/17. Among them, 6 re-injuries were found. Mean age at the time of injury was 24.8 years (SD 3.8). 31% (n = 20) of ACL ruptures occurred at the beginning of the season in August or September (p = 0.02). Mean time of RTC after primary ACL ruptures was 226.7 days (SD: 93.5) and 245.6 days (SD: 45.4) after re-injury. Although 62 (98%) players returned to football after injury and only one player immediately finished his career, 54.9% of the affected individuals played 3 years after the ACL rupture in the same league.
CONCLUSIONS: ACL ruptures lead to longer absence than 7 months from football but does not give reason for immediate career-ending. The decrease in playing level after 3 years illustrate the serious consequences of ACL ruptures in football. Media-based injury reports may provide interesting information.