Most dangerous sports in Australia

Cycling has the highest number of injuries but motor sports and roller sports are among the most dangerous.

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Cameron Thach's headshot

By

Nicola Middlemiss

&

Cameron Thach

Updated

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Australia may be a nation of sports lovers, but as we all know, taking part doesn't come without risks. In fact, research from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) found that 56,000 Aussies are hospitalised each year due to sports injuries, according to the latest data.

So what sports are the most dangerous? We've put together a table below.

Which sports cause the most injuries in Australia?

The table shows the top 10 sports that cause the most serious injuries in Australia.

The number of cases represents how many people stayed at least one night in hospital for treatment. Each sport has been ranked according to the total number of cases. We've split the table to show the separate data for emergencies and elective treatment, to give a more accurate representation of the risks in each sport.

Rank
Sports
Emergency
Sports
Elective
1
Cycling
7,036
Australian Rules Football
1,802
2
Wheeled and motor sports
3,241
Soccer
1,675
3
Roller sports
3,041
Cycling
1,472
4
Australian Rules Football
2,454
Other & unspecified football
1,245
5
Rugby
2,048
Rugby
1,242
6
Soccer
2,004
Basketball
1,032
7
Equestrian activities
1,996
Roller sports
1,030
8
Recreational Walking
1,931
Netball
763
9
Basketball
1,322
Wheeled motor sports
541
10
Other & unspecified football
1,074
Combat sports
458

*Figures represent patients who have stayed at least 1 night in hospital following a sports injury across 2021-22.

Which types of sport are the most dangerous?

Different sports often involve similar movements, which come with comparable risks. By putting these sports into groups, we can figure out which categories have been the most dangerous for Australians.

The number of injuries in each category won't always tell you how dangerous it is overall, however. This is because more people regularly participate in a certain type of sport, increasing the likelihood of injuries simply because of the larger number.

It's more effective to look at the injury rate of participants instead. We've taken a look at the number of injuries and the injury rate across different sports in Australia to give a clearer picture of the 10 most dangerous categories.

Riskiest
Sport category
Number of cases
Rate of injury
1
Outdoor team
698,000
26%
2
Combat
132,000
16%
3
Indoor team
310,000
15%
4
Motor related
46,000
15%
5
Horse related
42,000
15%
6
Lifestyle action
180,000
12%
7
Winter sports
39,000
11%
8
Lifestyle cardio
110,000
10%
9
Mainstream cardio
1,051,000
7%
10
Individual ball games
222,000
7%

*Figures represent sport-related injuries from respondents from 1 January to 31 December 2022.

Which sports injuries are most common?

Fractures are by far the most common sports injury in Australia, accounting for over half of all sports injuries in both men and women. The table below gives a breakdown of some of the most common sports injuries. Toggle through to see how they differ between men and women.

Injury
Number of cases
% of cases
Fracture
29,913
53.30%
Soft-tissue injury
9,291
16.60%
Intracranial injury
2,928
5.20%
Open wound
4,363
7.60%
Dislocation
2,248
4.00%
Superficial injury
1,725
3.10%
Internal organ or vessel of trunk
935
1.70%
Poisoning or toxic effect
136
0.20%
Burn
134
0.20%
Injury
Number of cases
% of all cases
Fracture
20,770
52.60%
Soft-tissue injury
6,563
16.60%
Intracranial injury
2,055
5.20%
Open wound
3,319
8.40%
Dislocation
1,745
4.40%
Superficial injury
1,188
3.00%
Internal organ or vessel of trunk
793
2.00%
Burn
71
0.20%
Poisoning or toxic effect
98
0.20%
Injury
Number of cases
% of all cases
Fracture
9,141
55.10%
Soft-tissue injury
2,727
16.5%
Intracranial injury
872
5.3%
Open wound
1,044
6.3%
Superficial injury
503
3.00%
Dislocation
537
3.2%
Internal organ or vessel of trunk
142
0.9%
Poisoning or toxic effect
65
0.40%
Burn
36
0.20%
*Figures represent overnight hospitalised patients in 2021–2022.

Which body parts are most likely to be hurt?

Most serious sporting injuries are related to the hip and lower limb, excluding the ankle and foot. The table below shows a breakdown of which body parts Aussies frequently injure while playing sports.

Body part
Number of cases
% of cases
Hip and lower limb
15,488
27.6%
Shoulder and upper limb
14,601
26.0%
Head and neck
10,047
17.9%
Wrist and hand
7,013
12.5%
Trunk
5,615
10.0%
Ankle and foot
2,467
4.4%
Body part
Number of cases
% of all cases
Hip and lower limb
10,436
18.6%
Shoulder and upper limb
10,036
17.9%
Head and neck
7,202
12.8%
Wrist and hand
5,422
9.7%
Trunk
4,066
7.3%
Ankle and foot
1759
3.1%
Body part
Number of cases
% of all cases
Hip and lower limb
5,050
9.0%
Shoulder and upper limb
4,080
8.1%
Head and neck
3,004
5.1%
Trunk
1,632
2.8%
Wrist and hand
1,443
2.8%
Ankle and foot
545
1.3%
*Figures represent overnight hospital patients in 2021–2022.

Who is most likely to be injured while playing sport?

Men aged 25–44 are most likely to be hospitalised due to a sports injury in Australia. The table below shows a breakdown of which age groups sustain the most injuries, as well as the number of injuries per 100,000 participants.

Use the tabs at the top of the table to see how the statistics vary between the general population, men and women.

Age
Cases
Rate per 100,000 participants
0–14
11,637
376.7
15–24
14,802
342,7
25–44
16,879
471.9
45–64
8,543
231.5
65+
4,208
135.8
Age
Cases
Rate per 100,000 participants
0–14
8,332
521.1
15–24
11,155
689.5
25–44
12,291
338.7
45–64
5,482
177.3
65+
2,230
109.0
Age
Cases
Rate per 100,000 participants
0–14
3,303
155.9
15–24
3,646
240.0
25–44
4,587
125.2
45–64
3,061
95.7
65+
1,978
85.0
*Figures represent overnight hospital patients in 2021–2022.

How often do sports lead to concussions?

There's a growing concern in Australia and internationally about the amount of sport-related concussions. According to research by the AIHW, there were almost 2,300 hospitalisations for concussions caused by sports between 2021 and 2022. Around 1,600 of these were in males, and 700 were in females.

While the short-term symptoms can be reversible, a single knock to the head can have serious consequences in later life. As well as mental health and, in some cases, financial issues, this has led to many Australians not being able to participate in their sport, attend school or have to take time off work.

Remember, the data used in this article only reflects sports injuries that required an overnight stay in the hospital. It's likely there are many thousands more cases of who were discharged within a day or that only required a doctor's appointment, but many still have kept people off work.

How can income protection insurance help?

Income protection insurance is designed to pay you a portion of your typical earnings if you're ever too sick or injured to work. For people who play sport regularly, that could mean a financial safety net in case you're hit by a bad tackle, take a tumble on the pitch or get knocked off your bike.

Remember, though, some more dangerous sports, like motor racing, may not be covered, and waiting periods may apply.

What about sports injuries and kids?

According to the AIHW, around 21% of children are hospitalised due to sports, exercise, or recreational activity. In 2021-22 this accounted for 18,700 total hospitalisations.

  • Over 1 in 3 injury hospitalisations for children aged 10-12 and 13-15 involved sports.
  • Cycling (16%) caused the highest number of hospitalisations across all age groups outside of adolescents, with 3000 cases.
  • Roller sports (16%) was second, and 1800 cases.
  • Australian Rules Football was third (9%), with 1750 cases.

Adolescents aged 16-18 typically have the highest rates of sports injury hospitalisations. However, they also have the highest rates of sports participation. In 2021-22, Australian Rules Football (14%), Rugby codes (13%), and Soccer (9%) were the leading causes of hospitalisations for adolescents.

Nicola Middlemiss's headshot
Journalist

Nicola Middlemiss is a journalist with nearly a decade of experience in personal finance and insurance. She has contributed to Domain, Yahoo Finance, Money Magazine and Insurance Business Australia, offering in-depth insights into commercial insurance in the Australian market. Nicola holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Leeds and a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification, which complies with ASIC standards. See full bio

Nicola's expertise
Nicola has written 245 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Personal finance
  • Personal insurance, including car, health, home, life, pet and travel insurance
  • Commercial business insurance
Cameron Thach's headshot
Co-written by

Writer

With a background in writing across education, Web3, and finance, Cameron’s mission is to create content that speaks directly to readers in a way that’s easy to understand, helping them navigate complex topics with confidence. Cameron studied a Bachelor of Commerce, Economics and Marketing at Macquarie University, graduating in 2019. See full bio

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