Head Accelerations During Soccer Heading

There is a continuing debate on if heading can cause neurocognitive defects in soccer players. Some studies suggest that repeated sub-concussive impacts may lead to neurocognitive deficits, while others dispute these claims. Any deficits in function would certainly be tied to the characteristics of the ball-head impact, yet the head accelerations of soccer heading have not been fully determined. Furthermore, no researchers to date have examined both head accelerations and neurocognitive function in the same study. The current research examines the potential for head injury suffered by a collegiate soccer player during headers similar to what they would experience in practice. Primary data collection used two three-axis accelerometers and an angular rate sensor coupled to a small remote data collection system, as well as video tapes of the headers to examine incoming and outgoing ball velocities. These accelerations were converted to Head Injury Criteria (HIC) values, which more accurately reflect the potential for injury. Six trials of two heading types were examined during testing. The first simulates heading a goal kick traveling at 16 m/s back in the direction from which it came. The second type involves redirecting a 12 m/s ball 90 degrees from its inflight path, which simulates heading a corner kick or cross towards the goal. Average accelerations were 29.26 and 32.64 Gs for the corner and straight on headers, respectively, and the maximum HIC value for all of the players was 133.3. None of the results from the neurocognitive tests indicated any detrimental effects on the participants.