Soccer Goals Can Kill or Injure You or Your Child

Soccer is one of the biggest sports in the United States now. Most parents think of soccer as a safe alternative to football or lacrosse. Did you know that from 1979 to May 2009, there have been 35 deaths and 53 reported injuries from portable soccer goals? This number consists of known and reported incidents only! How many more are out there? I am currently handling a case involving the death of a child resulting from a portable soccer goal tip over, and I can tell you there is not a sadder case than a family that has lost a child from a preventable incident.

Many portable soccer goals can weigh hundreds of pounds and are poorly designed. The goals are not properly counter weighted or rely solely upon anchors, which can become lost or separated from the goals. The reported deaths involve goals that accidentally tipped over from the wind, from children playing or climbing on them, and from people moving the goals to another location or to put nets on them. The Consumer Product Safety Commission published a guide book in 1995 and the family of a child killed by a falling portable soccer goal has developed a website that lists the victims I mentioned above, along with ways to prevent goals from tipping over.

It is clear that goal manufacturers are not properly designing their goals and/or not properly warning the public. If you, your children or your relatives play soccer warn them about the dangers of portable soccer goals and refer them to the two websites I have linked to above.