A groin strain is a tear in the adductor muscles of the inner thigh, usually from a sharp change of direction, a kick, or a sudden stretch. It is common across football codes and is notorious for recurring — chiefly because people return to sport when the pain has gone rather than when the strength has come back. Getting the return criteria right is most of the work.

Does this sound like you?

Most people have several of these, not all of them.

Sudden sharp pain in the inner thigh or groin
Pain squeezing the knees together
Bruising down the inner thigh in more significant tears
Difficulty sprinting, changing direction or kicking
Aching that lingers for weeks after the sharp pain settles

Why it happens

A sudden change of direction or a sprint start
Kicking, particularly across the body
A slip where the leg is forced outwards
Returning to sport before strength has fully recovered
A rapid increase in training load after a break

What we would do about it

Roughly in this order — each step waits for the one before it.

Early protection and gentle range work in the first days
Progressive adductor strengthening — the key to not doing it again
Hip and trunk strengthening around it
Graded return to running, then changing direction, then kicking
Objective strength testing before the return to sport rather than going on feel
Assessing for hip joint involvement where it is not settling

See a doctor first if

Your pain followed a significant injury
It is getting worse rather than settling
It comes with numbness, weakness or unexplained weight loss

This page is general information, not a diagnosis. Symptoms overlap between conditions, so the right treatment depends on an assessment.

Groin strains recur when the return is rushed

Pain settling is not the same as being ready. We test the strength properly and give you criteria to return on, rather than a date.

Book a groin assessment Ask a question first

Or call us on 0403 907 587 — we see patients across Seaton.

Other hip conditions we treat

Gluteal Tendinopathy Hip Osteoarthritis Hip Impingement Hip Replacement Rehab

Back to all hip conditions

General information only, not advice about your own problem — nothing here replaces an assessment. Source: Groin Strain on Physiopedia.

Groin Strain