High school female athletes are sustaining anterior cruciate ligament tears at significantly higher rates than male peers, with one study indicating females are up to eight times more likely to suffer these injuries. The injuries typically occur in noncontact situations involving fast changes in direction, and researchers emphasize that effective prevention methods have been available for decades but remain underutilized in high school sports.
Data from the National ACL Injury Coalition, formed by the Aspen Institute and the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, shows the concerning trend. Analysis of high school athletic trainer data demonstrated that the average annual ACL injury rate for high school athletes grew almost 26 percent from 2007 to 2022, with the rate for girls growing more than 32 percent compared to 14.5 percent for boys. Despite this evidence, physical therapist and biomechanics researcher Holly Silvers-Granelli noted that the data on prevention has existed for 25 years but remains largely underimplemented.
Evidence-based prevention programs such as FIFA 11+ and PEP warm-up and strengthening routines can reduce injury risk, yet coaches at high school levels often lack training or expert support to implement them. Many coaches are unaware of these programs, untrained to conduct them, or lack encouragement to learn about them. Recovery from ACL injuries demands surgery and up to a year of rehabilitation, physical therapy, and strength training, often creating significant financial burden and psychological impact. Many high school athletes never return to their previous performance level, and survivors carry heightened risk of repeated injury and degenerative joint disease.
Recent progress includes the American Youth Soccer Organization rolling out age- and stage-based neuromuscular training programs this spring, with video instructions for coaches. The Scottish Rite for Children hospital in Dallas is providing high school teams with motion-capture assessments and tailored pre-season injury-prevention training, resources typically available only at professional and collegiate levels. One coach noted that hands-on demonstration from trained professionals makes a significant difference in implementing proper exercises and movement patterns.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.bostonherald.com/2026/03/05/teen-girls-acl-tears/