Introduction: Buttock pain is a relatively common complaint among adolescent athletes and can have a very broad differential diagnosis.
Case presentation: The authors present a previously unreported case of acute obturator internus and obturator externus strain in an adolescent male American football player. The diagnosis was made by MRI. The patient was treated with relative rest, physical therapy, and gradual return to physical activities as tolerated.
Conclusions: Despite rarity of the hip external rotator muscles strains, it should be considered in the differential diagnosis of athletes with proximal posterior thigh and buttock pain.
Keywords: Buttocks; Football; Hip.