Objective: To analyse the incidence, characteristics and circumstances of injuries during a female youth amateur football tournament in Kenya.
Design: 14 injury recorders prospectively registered and classified all injuries during all matches. Four physiotherapists and two doctors supported the injury recorders.
Setting: A 2-day Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) inter-provincial football tournament for female players in Nairobi, Kenya. The tournament is organised by a non-governmental organisation (NGO).
Participants: 938 females divided into three age groups (under 13 years (U13), under 16 years (U16) and over 16 years (O16)).
Main outcome measurements: Overall injury incidence.
Results: 123 injuries occurred in 106 matches. The incidence of all injuries was 93.3 injuries/1000 h. Players in the U13 (relative risk (RR)=2.16, 95% CI 1.3 to 3.5; p=0.002) and U16 (RR=2.17, 95% CI 1.3 to 3.5; p=0.002) age groups had an increased risk of injury compared to the O16 group. Most injuries allowed the players to continue to play (n=98 of 121; 81%). For 15 (12%) of the injuries the player did not continue to play but was expected to fully participate in the following match, and eight of the injuries (6.1 injuries/1000 h) were expected to result in the player's absence from play for 1-7 days. The injuries most commonly affected the lower limb (n=100; 82%); contusions to the ankle (n=15; 12%) and foot/toe (n=15; 12%) were the most common specific injury types. Most acute injuries (89 of 113, 79%) were caused by player contact.
Conclusions: The incidence of injuries among female youth football players in a national tournament in Kenya was high, but time-loss injuries were rare. Playing football in a tournament organised by an NGO at the inter-provincial level was safe.
Keywords: Injury Prevention.