One in Six Injured Watching Football at Home

When you are watching the World Cup this summer you might want to remember this story. A new study in Wales shows that one on six people have injured themselves while watching football in the comforts of their own living rooms. The bulk of the injuries reported occurred during goal celebrations and included carpet burns from knee dives, concussion from banging heads with a fellow fan and bruised knees from hitting the coffee table mid-jump. Lest you be completely fearful of ever watching a match again, there are some tips you can take to stay safe.

“In anticipation of a goal, fans could stand up to avoid sharp reactions and sprains,” said chartered physiotherapist Sammy Margo.

“Also, fans should think about where they place their food and drink and position (them) close to them, to avoid over-stretching when the muscle tension is high during the game.”

Always solid advice.

I have to admit that I am part of the one in six who has suffered from a self-inflicted football watching injury. There was a game a few years back where my team had a chance to win at the end but our donkey of a forward missed a sitter right in front of the goal.

Unfortunately I didn’t miss when I proceeded to kick the wall in anger. All of a sudden there was a bright light shooting through my eyes and the pain was worse than having to watch Tunisia play Saudi Arabia every night for an entire year. Fortunately nothing was broken but I did limp around for a couple of weeks forced to tell everyone that I was a complete and utter arse. I was tempted to send the medical bill to that donkey of a forward, but he was one of our lower paid players so I never did.

It’s your turn to fess up. Have you ever sustained an injury watching a game at home?