TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2020//
TI  - The UEFA Heading Study: heading incidence in children's and youth' football (soccer) in eight European countries
JO  - Scandinavian journal of medicine and science in sports
A1  - Beaudouin, Florian
A1  - Gioftsidou, Asimenia
A1  - Larsen, Malte Nejst
A1  - Lemmink, Koen
A1  - Drust, Barry
A1  - Modena, Roberto
A1  - Espinola, Javier Ramos
A1  - Meiu, Mihai
A1  - Vouillamoz, Marc
A1  - Meyer, Tim
SP  - ePub
EP  - ePub
VL  - ePub
IS  - ePub
N2  - To assess the real-life magnitude of the heading incidence in children's and youth' football in eight European countries with different "football cultures" a cross-sectional observational design, in which one match per team in 480 different teams from eight European countries (2017/18-2018/19) was recorded by video. One training session was recorded in 312 teams. Clubs with Under-10, Under-12 (female/male/mixed) and Under-16 female and male teams were eligible to participate. Heading frequencies and types were analysed. <br><br>RESULTS are presented as headers per match/training and per team. Incidence rates (IR) per 1000 match/training hours were calculated. Under-10 teams carried out the lowest average number of headers per match (8.8), followed by Under-16 female (17.7), Under-12 (18.4), and Under-16 male (35.5). Total number of headers per match and team varied between countries. 80% of the total number of headers were single intentional headers, 12% heading duels, 3% unintentional headers by getting hit and 5% others (trends apparent in all age groups). Three head injuries occurred during match play corresponding to an IR of 0.70 (95% CI, 0.23-2.16). The lowest number of headers per training and team was found in Under-10 (21.3), followed by Under-16 females (34.1), Under-12 (35.8), and Under-16 males (45.0). In conclusion, this large-scale study presents novel data about the number and type of headers in youth' football throughout Europe. A more precise understanding of the heading incidence, specifically in young players, is mandatory for the debate of restrictions on heading in youth football.<br><br>This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0905-7188
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/sms.13694
ID  - ref1
ER  -