Goalkeeper is a position that can see you take different types of impacts. A ball to the face is something that’s bound to happen sooner rather than later. It’s important to be able to get that adrenaline rush to be able to continue on with the play until the danger is clear. Particularly for guys, a ball to the face will hurt, but it won’t be as bad as a ball to the private parts! That’s potentially the worst thing that can happen to you as a guy goalkeeper. With that in mind posting this next question makes a ton of sense. Do soccer goalies wear cups?
For those people who are not really sure what a cup is, or what the term is referring to in this context let me just explain. Basically a cup is usually a hard protection that you wear over your private parts. It’s often used in American football and other high contact sports. It’s also sometimes referred to as a jockstrap. Even in some of these high contact sports many players chose to forgo the use of a cup. That’s a bit of precursor to the answer to, do soccer goalies wear cups, but for a lot of people they are overly uncomfortable. As is the case with a lot of these gear articles, what I want to do is go over what to expect if you do decide to wear one. But first let’s answer the main question.
Do Soccer Goalies Wear Cups? : Most Would Say No
Again as I just mentioned with all of these gear articles, and things like do pro goalkeepers wear fingersave gloves you have to give a general answer. From my experience and from doing quite a bit of research for this article the answer to “soccer goalies wear cups” is mostly no. It’s not just a sense of toughness or anything like that. The thing is you need a ton of movement as a goalkeeper. There’s an argument to be made that this is something that’s kind of understated by people who don’t know the position. You need to be able to spread your legs out to be able to cover as much of the goal as you can on certain occasions.
Trying to do that with a cup could have all sorts of negative outcomes. For example, you could end up pinching something down there if you make some sudden moves. I would say that particular fear of pinching something down there, or getting a rash from having to move with a hard covering around that area is the fear that keeps many goalkeepers from wearing this type of protection. Does this all mean that you should never try and wear a cup no matter what? I wouldn’t rule out wearing a cup altogether. Here are a couple of reasons why.
New Technology Could Change Things
There’s no question that getting hit in the private parts hurts big time. My theory as to why potentially not more goalkeepers are looking into wearing a cup is that we’re stuck on old technology. For most people the idea of a cup is a bulky and hard protection for this area. New cups though are not exactly that. You can just go out and buy what looks like regular underwear that just so happens to be harder around that particular area. Without having to put any type of hard and bulky protection around there.
Should You Actively Be Looking For Extra Protection?
This really depends on who you are and where you are in your career. Sometimes parents can get overly worried that their kid is going to play in goal. So what they want to do is literally go out and buy every single extra protection under the sun. More often than not that’s just a perfect way to waste a ton of money. It can be tough sending your kid out there with what you think is less protection than he or she needs. I would just advise them to let them play. Soccer is usually not an overly dangerous sport particularly with little kids. From there, if you see that they’re getting hurt or something like this then it could be a good idea to look into extra protection.
I always resort back to making sure you wear what makes you feel comfortable. At the same time, if you see that you’re scared of particular plays because you feel that you’re not protected. Then looking for extra protection is a no brainer. I see this a ton with young goalkeepers in 1v1 situations. When they are alone against the striker, the best thing that you can do is extend your body in every direction while you close off the shooting angles. There’s no question that doing this exposes yourself to getting hit big time. As a goalkeeper you have to be fine with taking these risks. Otherwise just play another position.
Could You Really Benefit From Wearing A Cup When Playing Goalkeeper?
This is actually a good question to explore. Technically if you’re wearing a cup you’re going to be protected from direct impacts. Certainly seems like a no brainer. When you factor in the movements that you have to be able to do when you’re a goalkeeper some of the doubts start to pour in. Also, take into account that some of the shots that you can take to that particular area are going to be coming from different angles. So what really worries me on a personal level is that wearing a cup could become a negative thing because you’ll get pinched on the left side by the cup if you take a shot to the right side.
As I mentioned ultimately, your experience wearing a cup can be completely different depending on the type of cup that you’re wearing. Having said this, I would understand if someone would consider my criticism to be unfair. I also don’t want to get into the argument that a lot of people make for not wearing a cup. Which is, that any contact to that area hurts regardless of whether or not you’re wearing a cup. That’s kind of like saying you can still get hurt in a car crash while wearing a seatbelt. The movement issue is the concerning factor for me. From what I’ve been able to gather it’s the same for a lot of players. I got to say research for this article was awkward!
How Much Of An Issue Are Shots To The Private Area?
A question that maybe I should’ve answered earlier in the article is whether or not shots to the private area are really something that you should worry about. There’s no reason to sugarcoat this. You’re going to get hit in the private parts while playing goalkeeper. As I recently mentioned, there are plays where you are going to have to literally expose yourself and those shots are potentially going to hurt regardless of what type of protection you’re wearing. From there, you can get lucky and really only get hit in that area from time to time. I would say that’s the more common instance. It’s just from time to time that you’re going to get hurt down there.
Sometimes what happens though is that you get into a stretch where it just seems like it keeps happening time and time again. As coaches you can teach certain techniques to try and avoid contact with these areas. Particularly if you’re sliding forwards towards a ball that you’re going to grab with your hands. In most other areas of the game there’s going to be very little that you’re going to be able to do to avoid contact in these areas. As you can probably tell it’s a balance that you have to look into. Really before you get into goal you need to be aware of the risks that you’re potentially taking.
Wearing The Right Type of Underwear
Even if you’re not going to wear a cup, wearing the right type of underwear can really help you out. What you’re going to want to wear is underwear that is a little tighter than usual. This is because you want to make sure that everything stays in place down there. When you do that you’re going to be able to deal with the impact better than you would if everything is kind of loose down there. I’m not saying that it won’t hurt if you get hit. It’s just that it’ll typically be better to make sure that everything is in the proper place.
The bad thing about wearing loose underwear for men, and for goalkeepers in particular, is that you can cause damage to your private parts with just the typical goalkeeper movements. You’re not going to have to take a shot to that particular area for it to hurt. Just diving regularly or trying to stretch your legs out to block a shot can turn into an extremely painful experience. Therefore, I would say that wearing tight boxer briefs is actually more important than wearing a cup. At least when it comes to goalkeeping. I wouldn’t dare make that assumption in other sports.
Do Soccer Goalies Wear Cups : If You Are Going To Try A Cup Which One Should You Try?
At this point my stance on do soccer goalies wear cups is pretty clear. In doing the research for this article I found that most people in the business feel the same way. Now, I have seen cups that you can literally just fit into a jockstrap like underwear. I would say that if you’re going to try and wear a cup that would be the type of cup that I would try on. Essentially what you could get is that extra protection right in the private area. What you want to avoid though is having the actual cup pinch your thigh area.
If you are going to try and wear a cup it’s super important to make sure that you’re wearing the right size. If it’s too big you are going to have those pitching problems. It’s going to be a matter of time really before you develop a rash. That’s probably something that you’re going to want to avoid at all costs. Speaking of costs, what is the intangible cost benefit ratio?
Do Soccer Goalies Wear Cups? – Should You Even Try One Out?
Again I’ve made it clear throughout the article that it’s probably not the best idea for goalkeepers to wear cups. That being said, if you were to find the perfect fit it could certainly make sense. Heck, if it saves you from just one painful shot to your private area it could be worth it. In reality though, you have to realize that there’s a ton of gear available for goalkeepers. Ideally what you want to do is construct your outfit in such a way that you feel protected enough, but comfortable to be able to perform at your highest potential.
In other sports you don’t really get to pick and choose the type of gear that you wear. Particularly in sports where wearing a helmet for example is mandatory. When it comes to soccer, and goalkeeping in particular you’re literally never going to be wearing all of the extra gear that’s available for you. What you usually want to do is literally craft your outfit as I was just mentioning.
When it comes to taking shots to the private area it’s one of those things that is hard to avoid. That’s the weird part about all of this. With other injuries like shoulders, elbows and fingers they are sometimes caused by some type of technique deficiency. Whereas these types of issues are just freak accidents or part of the game. There are going to be times particularly in 1v1 situations when you’re going to need to stretch your arms and legs out to try and cover as much of the goal as possible. The one area that you’re going to leave uncovered is the area that potentially hurts the most. That’s just the nature of the game though!
