Research summary · Injury prevention
Foot-strike angle and knee loading during soccer cuts
A laboratory study examines sex-related differences in knee energy absorption and foot-strike angle during unexpected direction changes in soccer footwear.
- Publication year
- 2026
- First published online
- Publication type
- Laboratory repeated-measures biomechanics study
- Journal
- Journal of Sports Sciences
- Population / context
- Male and female soccer athletes
What the publication reports
Ten male and ten female athletes performed cuts before and after a fatigue protocol. Women showed greater negative knee-joint power and foot-strike angles. Foot-strike angle correlated with negative knee power, while positive knee power did not differ clearly by sex or fatigue.
Limits and interpretation
Only 20 athletes were studied, and injury occurrence was not measured. Biomechanical associations do not establish that changing foot-strike angle prevents ACL injuries or identify one optimal cutting technique.
Read the source
Consult the original record for the full author list, methods, references, funding and competing-interest disclosures.
Foot-strike angle affects performance and injury risk during cutting in soccer athletes
Original publication / indexed recordPMID: 42829962DOI: 10.1080/02640414.2026.2741752Reader discussion
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