Biology of Sport
eISSN: 2083-1862
ISSN: 0860-021X
Biology of Sport
Current Issue Manuscripts accepted About the journal Editorial board Abstracting and indexing Archive Ethical standards and procedures Contact Instructions for authors Journal's Reviewers Special Information
Editorial System
Submit your Manuscript
SCImago Journal & Country Rank
Search
Editorial Policies
Sarajevo Declaration on Integrity and Visibility of Scholarly Publications

Open access

without publication fees
Share:
Send email
Share:
Original paper

Return of match running performance following muscle strain injuries of varying severity in professional football

Victor Moreno-Pérez
1, 2
,
Aaron Miralles-Iborra
1
,
Juan Del Coso
3, 4
,
Fidel Agulló
5
,
Aitor Soler
5
,
Javier Courel-Ibáñez
6

  1. Sports Research Centre, Miguel Hernandez University of Elche, Alicante, Spain
  2. Translational Research Centre of Physiotherapy, Department of Pathology and Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Miguel Hernandez University, Alicante, Spain
  3. Sport Sciences Research Centre, Rey Juan Carlos University, Spain
  4. Institute of Health and Sport Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Madrid, Spain
  5. Elche Club de Fútbol, Elche, Spain
  6. Department of Physical Education and Sports, Faculty of Education and Sport Sciences, University of Granada, Melilla, Spain
Biol Sport. 2026;43:887–897
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5114/biolsport.2026.159530
Online publish date: 2026/02/20
Article file
- 66_05460_Article.pdf  [3.30 MB]
Get citation
 
PlumX metrics:
 
1. Chamari K, Rekik RN, Chaabane M, et al. Evolution of injury burden in Qatari professional football — 8 season data from the Aspetar Injury and Illness Surveillance Programme. Biol Sport. 2025; 42(1):201–209. doi: 10.5114 /biolsport.2025.139089.
2. Ekstrand J, Bengtsson H, Waldén M, Davison M, Khan KM, Hägglund M. Hamstring injury rates have increased during recent seasons and now constitute 24% of all injuries in men’s professional football: the UEFA Elite Club Injury Study from 2001/02 to 2021/22. Br J Sports Med. 2023; 57(5):292–298. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2021-105407.
3. Forsythe B, Bohn C, Hand C, et al. Hamstring Injuries in Major League Soccer: A 10-Year Analysis of Injury Rate, Return to Play, and Performance Metrics by Player Position. Orthop J Sports Med. 2025; 13(8). doi: 10.1177/2325967 1251360422.
4. Adam F, Derman W, Schwellnus M, Boer PH, Jordaan E, Runciman P. Injury incidence according to athlete impairment type during the 2012 and 2016 Summer Paralympic Games: a combined analysis of 101 108 athlete days. Br J Sports Med. 2024; 58(15):852–859. doi: 10.1136 /bjsports-2023-107144.
5. Moreno-Perez VV, Paredes V, Pastor D, et al. Under-exposure to official matches is associated with muscle injury incidence in professional footballers. Biol Sport. 2021; 38(4):563–571. doi: 10.5114/ biolsport.2021.100360.
6. Nieto Torrejón L, Martínez-Serrano A, Villalón JM, Alcaraz PE. Economic impact of muscle injury rate and hamstring strain injuries in professional football clubs. Evidence from LaLiga. PLoS One. 2024; 19(6). doi: 10.1371 /journal.pone.0301498.
7. Calleja-González J, Mallo J, Cos F, et al. A commentary of factors related to player availability and its influence on performance in elite team sports. Front Sports Act Living. 2023; 4. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2022.1077934.
8. Ardern CL, Glasgow P, Schneiders A, et al. 2016 Consensus statement on return to sport from the First World Congress in Sports Physical Therapy, Bern. Br J Sports Med. 2016; 50(14):853–864. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2016-096278.
9. Buckthorpe M, Frizziero A, Roi GS. Update on functional recovery process for the injured athlete: Return to sport continuum redefined. Br J Sports Med. 2019; 53(5):265–267. doi: 10.1136 /bjsports-2018-099341.
10. Choice E, Hooker K, Downey R, Haugh G. A Return to Performance Framework to Effectively Complete the Rehabilitation Continuum for Elite Soccer. Strength Cond J. 2024; 46(6):667–685. doi: 10.1519/SSC.0000000000000844.
11. Mendiguchia J, Martinez-Ruiz E, Edouard P, et al. A Multifactorial, Criteria-based Progressive Algorithm for Hamstring Injury Treatment. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2017; 49(7):1482–1492. doi: 10.1249/ MSS.0000000000001241.
12. Mujika I, Padilla S. Detraining: Loss of Training-Induced Physiological and Performance Adaptations. Part I. Sports Medicine. 2000; 30(2):79–87. doi: 10.2165/00007256-200030020- 00002.
13. Jiménez-Rubio S, Navandar A, Rivilla-García J, Paredes-Hernández V. Validity of an on-field readaptation program following a hamstring injury in professional soccer. J Sport Rehabil. 2019; 28(6):1–7. doi: 10.1123/jsr.2018-0203.
14. Martín-García A, Gómez Díaz A, Bradley PS, Morera F, Casamichana D. Quantification of a professional football team’s external load using a microcycle structure. J Strength Cond Res. 2018; 32(12):3511–3518. doi: 10.1519 /jsc.0000000000002816.
15. Ekstrand J, Waldén M, Hägglund M. Hamstring injuries have increased by 4% annually in men’s professional football, since 2001: A 13-year longitudinal analysis of the UEFA Elite Club injury study. Br J Sports Med. 2016; 50(12):731–737. doi: 10.1136/ bjsports-2015-095359.
16. Mitchell A, Gimpel M. A Return-to-Performance Pathway for Professional Soccer: A Criteria-based Approach to Return Injured Professional Players Back to Performance. JOSPT Open. 2024; 2(3):166–178. doi: 10.2519 /josptopen.2024.1240.
17. Tabben M, Chamari K, Alkhelaifi K, Alam T, Almulla J. Longitudinal cohort study on subsequent injury risk in professional football players in the Qatar Stars League: a probabilistic approach using basic learning. Biol Sport. 2026; 43(1):489–498. doi: 10.5114/ biolsport.2026.152345.
18. Paton BM, Read P, Van Dyk N, et al. London International Consensus and Delphi study on hamstring injuries part 3: rehabilitation, running and return to sport. Br J Sports Med. 2023; 57(5):278–291. doi: 10.1136/ bjsports-2021-105384.
19. Whiteley R, Massey A, Gabbett T, et al. Match High-Speed Running Distances Are Often Suppressed After Return From Hamstring Strain Injury in Professional Footballers. Sports Health. 2021; 13(3):290–295. doi: 10.1177/1941738120964456.
20. Whiteley R, Gregson W, Bahr R, et al. High-speed running during match-play before and after return from hamstring injury in professional footballers. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2022; 32(10):1502–1509. doi: 10.1111/ sms.14219.
21. Hoppen MI, Reurink G, De Boode VA, et al. Return to match running performance after a hamstring injury in elite football: A single-centre retrospective cohort study. BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med. 2022; 8(1):e001240. doi: 10.1136/bmjsem-2021-001240.
22. Raya-González J, Pulido JJ, Beato M, et al. Analysis of the effect of injuries on match performance variables in professional soccer players: a retrospective, experimental longitudinal design. Sports Med Open. 2022; 8(1):31. doi: 10.1186/s40798-022 -00427-w.
23. Guitart M, Alonso-Callejo A, Rodas G, et al. How do muscle injuries relate to return-to-performance metrics in male elite football players? Biol Sport. 2026; 43(1):165–175. doi: 10.5114 /BIOLSPORT.2026.153532.
24. Ekstrand J, Askling C, Magnusson H, Mithoefer K. Return to play after thigh muscle injury in elite football players: Implementation and validation of the Munich muscle injury classification. Br J Sports Med. 2013; 47(12):769–774. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2012-092092.
25. Bahr R, Clarsen B, Derman W, et al. International Olympic Committee consensus statement: methods for recording and reporting of epidemiological data on injury and illness in sport 2020 (including STROBE Extension for Sport Injury and Illness Surveillance (STROBE-SIIS)). Br J Sports Med. 2020; 54(7):372–389. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2019-101969.
26. García-Calvo T, Ponce-Bordón JC, Pons E, del Campo RL, Resta R, Raya-González J. High metabolic load distance in professional soccer according to competitive level and playing positions. PeerJ. 2022; 10. doi: 10.7717 /peerj.13318.
27. Zumeta-Olaskoaga L, Bender A, Lee DJ. Flexible modelling of time-varying exposures and recurrent events to analyse training load effects in team sports injuries. J R Stat Soc Ser C Appl Stat. 2025; 74(2):391–405. doi: 10.1093/jrsssc/qlae059.
28. Nakagawa S, Schielzeth H. Repeatability for Gaussian and non-Gaussian data: a practical guide for biologists. Biol Rev. 2010; 85(4):935–956. doi: 10.1111 /J.1469-185X.2010.00141.X.
29. Wood SN. Generalized Additive Models. Vol 49. Chapman and Hall/CRC; 2017. doi: 10.1201/9781315370279.
30. Perna P, Kerin F, Greig N, Beato M. Return-to-play criteria following a hamstring injury in professional football: a scoping review. Res Sports Med. 2025; 33(2):175–194. doi: 10 .1080/15438627.2024.2439274.
31. Faude O, Koch T, Meyer T. Straight sprinting is the most frequent action in goal situations in professional football. J Sports Sci. 2012; 30(7):625–631. doi: 10.1080/02640414.2012.665940.
32. Portillo J, Abián P, Calvo B, Paredes V, Abián-Vicén J. Effects of muscular injuries on the technical and physical performance of professional soccer players. Physician and Sportsmedicine. 2020; 48(4):437–441. doi: 10.1080 /00913847.2020.1744485.
33. Hallén A, Ekstrand J. Return to play following muscle injuries in professional footballers. J Sports Sci. 2014; 32(13):1229–1236. doi: 10.1080 /02640414.2014.905695.
34. Gregson W, Di Salvo V, Varley MC, et al. Harmful association of sprinting with muscle injury occurrence in professional soccer match-play: A two-season, league wide exploratory investigation from the Qatar Stars League. J Sci Med Sport. 2020; 23(2):134–138. doi: 10.1016 /j.jsams.2019.08.289.
35. Mendiguchia J, Samozino P, Martinez-Ruiz E, et al. Progression of mechanical properties during on-field sprint running after returning to sports from a hamstring muscle injury in soccer players. Int J Sports Med. 2014; 35(8):690–695. doi: 10.1055/s-0033-1363192.
36. González-Rodenas J, Moreno-Pérez V, Castaño-Zambudio A, López-Del Campo R, Nevado F, Del Coso J. Locomotor characteristics of intense accelerations according to the playing position in top Spanish football teams during competition. Biol Sport. 2025; 42(4):299–310. doi: 10.5114 /biolsport.2025.151652.
37. Harper DJ, Carling C, Kiely J. High-Intensity Acceleration and Deceleration Demands in Elite Team Sports Competitive Match Play: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies. Sports Med. 2019; 49(12):1923–1947. doi: 10.1007/S40279-019-01170-1.
38. Pecci J, Sánchez-Trigo H, Mancha-Triguero D, et al. Return to performance: machine learning insights into how absence time following muscle injuries affects match running performance in LaLiga soccer players. Biol Sport. 2025; 42(4):275–286. doi: 10.5114/ biolsport.2025.151651.
39. Raya-González J, Ponce-Bordón JC, García-Calvo T, Polo-Tejada J, Sanabria-Pino B, Lobo-Triviño D. What Are the Consequences of Hamstring Injuries on Soccer Players’ Match Running Performance? A Systematic Review. Sports Health. Published online 2025. doi: 10.1177/1941738125135 0919.
40. Raya-González J, García-Calvo T, Rojas-Valverde D, Campo RL Del, Resta R, Diaz-García J. Understanding the Impact of Hamstring Injuries on Match Performance in Spanish Professional Soccer Players: Two Full Seasons Follow-Up. Kinesiology. 2023; 55(2):375–382. doi: 10.26582 /k.55.2.18.
41. Harper DJ, Cervantes C, Van Dyke M, et al. The braking performance framework: practical recommendations and guidelines to enhance horizontal deceleration ability in multi-directional sports. Int J Strength Cond. 2024;4(1). doi:10.47206/ijsc. v4i1.351
Copyright: Institute of Sport. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons CC BY License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use.
  
Termedia
About us Contact
Copyright notice Privacy policy Advertising policy Contact us
Quick links
Journals Books eBooks Events
© 2026 Termedia Sp. z o.o.
Developed by Termedia.