Earlier this month, CNN reported on a study released by the journal Pediatrics, finding that the annual injury rate for young soccer players jumped by 111% from 1990 to 2014, with older children between 12 and 17 years of age being more than three times as susceptible to injury.

With this said, the increase in youth soccer-related injuries coincides with a significant rise in participation for the sport. Groups like US Youth Soccer have seen close to a 100% increase in participation during the study years and many other youth sports are also on the rise.

As you may imagine, concussion-related injuries spiked almost 1,600% from 1990 to 2014. Suspected reasons for this include increased participation, more awareness surrounding concussions, and better recognition of concussions by doctors and coaches due to passing of youth sports concussion laws.

While no one wants to see injuries on the rise, the fact that participation in youth sports is increasing is a good sign – better for kids to be up and active versus the alternative.

Parents can protect their young athletes by ensuring the Clubs in which they participate have good policies surrounding concussion awareness training, good facilities management and emergency action plans. It’s also important to afford children the opportunity to try a variety of different activities during the off season to let their muscles rest and recoup.

Lastly, parents can also protect their wallets by insuring participation fees through groups like NextWave Insurance in the event of injury. Last month we posted about how these insurance policies work, and how to sign your organization up to offer these services to your members through Demosphere.

For more information on Next Wave Insurance, contact our Sales Team