Injury rates of the German Women's American Football National Team from 2009 to 2011

American football is one of the leading causes of athletic-related injuries. Injury rates in female elite players are mostly unknown. We hypothesized that the injury rates of female was comparable to those in men's football during practice, as well as games. From 2009 to 2011, injury data were collected from the German female national team during training camps, World Championship 2010 and International friendly matches. The injury was categorized by location on the body and recorded as fracture/dislocation, strain, concussion, contusion or other injury. Injury rates were determined based on the exposure of an athlete to a game or practice event. The injury rate was calculated as the ratio of injuries per 1000 athlete exposures (AE). The rate of injury was significantly higher during games (58.8/1000 AE) than practices [16.3/1000 AE, (P< 0.01)]. Furthermore, the injury rate in the tryouts was significantly higher (24.05/1000 AE) compared to other training sessions with the national team (11.24/1000 AE). Our findings show that the injury rates in female elite American football players can be compared to those described for male players. Higher injury rates during matches than in training should also be underlined.