Sports and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Injuries

Both contact and noncontact sports can put a high demand on the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and lead to increased risk for injury. Generally, high-demand sports are those sports that require stop-and-go movements, jumping, or weaving through other players or obstacles.

High-demand sports include:

• Basketball.
• Figure skating.
• Football.
• Gymnastics.
• Handball.
• Field hockey.
• Lacrosse.
• Rugby.
• Skiing.
• Soccer.
• Tennis (especially singles).
• Volleyball.
• Wrestling.

Moderate-demand sports include:

• Baseball.
• Tennis (doubles).
• Track (hurdles and nonjumping field events).

Low-demand sports include:

• Crew.
• Cycling.
• Jogging.
• Swimming.
• Track (running events).

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