TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Soccer A1 - GassĂ©, Susanne A1 - Shamus, Eric A2 - Shamus, Eric A2 - Shamus, Jennifer PY - 2017 T2 - Sports Injury Prevention & Rehabilitation, 2e AB - Soccer (fĂștbol) was an exhibition sport in 1900 and 1904 at the Olympic Games. In 1908, it became an Olympic football tournament under the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).1 Each year thousands of new participants take to the soccer fields. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, In 2001, there were an estimated 120 million participants worldwide.2,3,4 In 2006, FIFA did a survey of 207 member associations and it is estimated that there are 265 million male and female players with an additional 5 million referees.5 Germany has the highest registered players at 6.3 million and the Unites States is second with 4.2 million and Brazil third with 2.1 million.5 The explosion of participants can be attributed to several factors. The game is fairly easy to understand, relatively inexpensive to play, and easily accessible to children (and many parents encourage the participation in soccer over more so-called dangerous sports like football and hockey).2 Because of this soccer craze, it is important for medical professionals who work with these athletes to understand the demands of the sport and how to recognize and treat commonly seen injuries. SN - PB - McGraw-Hill Education CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/11/12 UR - accessphysiotherapy.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1142282048 ER -