Return to match running performance after a hamstring injury in elite football: a single-centre retrospective cohort study

OBJECTIVES: To determine the number of matches to return to pre-injury match running performance after sustaining an acute hamstring injury. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, the injuries of the players of the first, Under21, Under19, Under18 and Under17 teams of a professional football club in the period 2017–2020 were analysed. Acute hamstring injuries with a minimal absence from training or match play of 7 days were included. For running performance, we assessed the following variables: maximal velocity (km/hour), total distance, high-intensity distance (17.5–22.5 km/hour) and sprint distance (>22.5 km/hour). We calculated the average and 95% CI for these variables during the last five matches before the injury. The primary outcome was the number of matches to reach maximal velocity within the 95% CI of the player’s individual pre-injury performance. Secondary outcome scores included the duration (in days and matches) to reach the other running performance variables. RESULTS: 18 hamstring injuries in 15 players were included. 15 out of 18 injuries (83%) showed a return to pre-injury maximal velocity in the second match after return to play. The median number of matches to return to pre-injury maximal velocity was 2 (IQR 1–2). In the first match after return to play, pre-injury total distance was reached in 100% of the injuries, pre-injury sprint distance was reached in 94% of the injuries and pre-injury high-intensity distance was reached in 89% of the injuries. CONCLUSION: Following an acute hamstring injury in elite football, pre-injury match running performance is reached in the first or second match.