Fatigue-induced balance impairment in young soccer players.

CONTEXT

Although balance is generally recognized to be an important feature in ensuring good performance in soccer, its link with functional performance remains mostly unexplored, especially in young athletes.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate changes in balance induced by fatigue for unipedal and bipedal static stances in young soccer players.

DESIGN

Crossover study.

SETTING

Biomechanics laboratory and outdoor soccer field.

PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS

Twenty-one male soccer players (age = 14.5 ± 0.2 years, height = 164.5 ± 5.6 cm, mass = 56.8 ± 6.8 kg).

INTERVENTION(S): Static balance was assessed with postural-sway analysis in unipedal and bipedal upright stance before and after a fatigue protocol consisting of a repeated sprint ability (RSA) test (2 × 15-m shuttle sprint interspersed with 20 seconds of passive recovery, repeated 6 times).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): On the basis of the center-of-pressure (COP) time series acquired during the experimental tests, we measured sway area, COP path length, and COP maximum displacement and velocity in the anteroposterior and mediolateral directions.

RESULTS

Fatigue increased all sway values in bipedal stance and all values except COP velocity in the mediolateral direction in unipedal stance. Fatigue index (calculated on the basis of RSA performance) was positively correlated with fatigue/rest sway ratio for COP path length and COP velocity in the anteroposterior and mediolateral directions for nondominant single-legged stance.

CONCLUSIONS

Fatigued players exhibited reduced performance of the postural-control system. Participants with better performance in the RSA test appeared less affected by balance impairment, especially in single-legged stance.