A footballer who ruptured major ligaments in each of her knees has said recovery from the injuries was “mental torture”.
Chloe Chivers, 26, who plays for Swansea City Ladies, said she was “stuck in the house” after rupturing her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and considered retirement.
Studies have found female footballers are up to eight times more likely than men to injure their ACLs, and players including Wales’ Megan Wynne will miss Euro 2025, which starts on Wednesday, as a result.
Experts warned a lack of structured performance pathways in women’s football was a leading factor.
Chivers, 26, from Abertillery in Blaenau Gwent, ruptured the ACL in her right knee in 2018 playing in the qualifying round of the Women’s Champions League for Cardiff Met.
In 2021, she then ruptured the same ligament in her left knee.
“My first one was just a clean rupture, just a turn, and my second one was actual dislocation which caused the rupture,” she said.
“I sort of remember someone coming in to tackle me…and I thought ‘if I don’t jump over this, my ankle’s going to break’.
“So I just remember jumping over the ball and yeah just my knee dislocated. I watched it dislocate.”
Chivers, who is semi-pro and is also a residential support worker, had previously told herself she would retire if she ever injured her ACL, but her family’s encouragement helped her get through two successful operations and back on the pitch.
“You can’t drive, you can’t work, you’re stuck in the house, you’ve got to rely on everyone,” she said.
“It was like mental torture – that’s the only way to describe it.
“Before injuring myself I said if I ever did my ACL I’d retire, so I was really, really reluctant to actually have the operation.
“I just remember my Mam being like ‘come on, you’ve got to do it’. I just wanted to do it for my family really more than anything.”
Research has long suggested ACL injuries are more prevalent in female footballers.
Rapid directional changes and landing after heading the ball are common events on a football pitch that can lead to ACL injuries.
The injury typically takes about six to nine months to recover from, although returns to competitive sports can take between nine months and a year, sometimes longer.
A study by Leeds Beckett University found 14 Women’s Super League players sustained ACL injuries either in the league or on international duty since August 2024. They’ve also launched a three-year research into the injury with Fifpro, the Professional Footballers’ Association and Nike.
Many high-profile names have suffered injuries, including England captain Leah Williamson, who was absent for the 2023 World Cup, and former Ballon d’Or Feminin runner-up Sam Kerr, who has not played since 2024.
Wales’ Sophie Ingle has raced back to fitness for the Euros after injuring her ACL in September.
But her teammate Wynne was not so lucky and will miss Wales’ competition debut.
Wynne, 32, who plays for Perth Glory in Australia, suffered an ACL injury in the final game of the season in April.
She said she had spoken to head coach Rhian Wilkinson three days before the injury.
“She said ‘good luck for your last game’ and said she was looking forward to catching up when I get back.
“Obviously, as soon as I did it, that was in the back of my mind that, that chance if I ever did get it, it’s over.
“So yeah, I don’t know whether I might have been involved in the May squad, it’s hard to kind of think of the what ifs.”
It was Wynne’s second ACL injury – the first coming in 2020 just weeks after joining Bristol City.
“Physically, I was probably the strongest I’ve been in the gym. Just sometimes you just can’t help it,” she said of her second injury.
“You’ve got to wait for the scan results and everything, but unfortunately I already knew by the look on people’s faces and the physio’s face – something was up.”
She said recovery had been “hard”, especially as her teammates were preparing to compete in the Euros, but she said she was “proud” to have been involved and was looking forward to watching Wales “have the opportunity they all really deserve”.
Why do women get more ACL injuries?
Sara Gray, a graduate sports therapist, said the risk to an ACL injury was “multi-factorial”.
“Women are not small men we are built very differently and even down to the structure of our bones they sit slightly differently,” she said.
“If we look at where the ACL attaches on the female thigh bone it’s smaller in women so if that’s smaller, the ACL tends to be smaller and a little bit weaker.”
She also said the way the thigh bone aligned with the knee also placed the ACL under “a little bit more stress”.
Dr Kate Williams, a senior lecturer in sports therapy at the University of South Wales, said the biggest difference between male and female athletes was the “physical preparation and performance pathway experiences”.
“Males have a really good structure for going through an academy or a structured performance pathway.
“They are given access to excellent medical care, physical preparation, strength and conditioning programs, technical coaching.”
Females, she added, “don’t necessarily have that structure”.
Research also suggests oestrogen peaks during menstrual cycles can reduce joint stability.
But Dr Williams said research should go into injury prevention programmes rather than a focus on structural and hormonal difference.
“The whole team undertakes a standardized warm-up that addresses a number of physical concerns that predispose our female athletes to ACLs,” she said.
“As long as we start them pre-season…do them two to three times per week, and we target our younger players, they can be effective in reducing ACL injuries by around 60%.”
