Creatine pilot leaves soccer injury prevention uncertain
Strength and jump performance improved, but injury incidence and missed training differences were not statistically significant in this small placebo-controlled trial.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The trial did not establish that creatine prevents injuries in amateur soccer players. Although fewer injuries and missed training sessions were reported with creatine, neither difference reached statistical significance. Some strength measures and jump height improved relative to placebo, but those performance changes cannot substitute for evidence of an injury-prevention benefit.
This abstract-based summary is limited by the pilot's small size, a wide confidence interval for injury risk, and conflicting participant totals in the methods and results. The injury estimate remains compatible with substantially different effects.
What researchers found
Musculoskeletal injury incidence
Creatine versus placebo over 14 weeks: 8.3% versus 36.4%; p = 0.155. The difference was not statistically significant.
Injuries and performance answer different questions
Injury incidence and training availability were the main outcomes. Strength and jumping were secondary measures, so improvements in these tests answer a different question from whether players experienced fewer injuries or could attend more training.
The uncertainty remains substantial
The numerical injury difference favored creatine, but its confidence interval was wide and included no difference. That uncertainty means the pilot neither demonstrates reliable protection nor proves that creatine has no effect on injury risk.
The original publication
Effectiveness of a soccer injury prevention program based on creatine supplementation and internal load monitoring: a randomized controlled pilot study.
Soler Hurtado M, Treguier M, González-de-la-Flor Á et al.
J Int Soc Sports Nutr · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41704196
- Record checked
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