• Connor Read, Christopher Beaumont, Jonathan Isbell, Alex Dombrowsky, Eugene Brabston, Brent Ponce, Heath Hale, Kennieth Mccollough, Reed Estes, and Amit M Momaya.
• UAB Sports Medicine, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
• J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 2019 Mar 1; 59 (3): 520-523.

IntroductionInjury documentation and prevention has largely focused on the athletes participating in the sporting event. However, spectators are at risk for injury as well depending on the sport and venue. No study to date has recorded and analyzed spectator injuries in sports. The purpose of this study was to document spectator injuries across different sports.Evidence AcquisitionScholarly articles and internet search engines were used to generate a list of spectator injuries across a variety of sports. Information gathered regarding each specific spectator injury included sport type, injury type, and injury mechanism.Evidence SynthesisA total of 181 spectator injuries were collected. The sport with the most spectator injuries found was automobile/motorcycle racing (N.=123), followed by cycling (N.=25), cricket (N.=12), baseball (N.=10), and hockey (N.=8). The majority of spectator injuries were related to the sport and not the behavior of the surrounding spectators. Among documented injuries sustained by spectators, automobile/motorcycle racing had the greatest number of mortalities (N.=38), followed by cycling (N.=17), hockey (N.=4), baseball (N.=2), and cricket (N.=1).ConclusionsAlthough uncommon, spectators at sporting events are at risk for injury. Some of these injuries are serious and even fatal. Future work needs to focus on implementing safety measures to protect spectators while still allowing them to enjoy live sporting events.

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