Taping – What it Does and When to Use It

Nothing says warrior like a footy player running on the ground with strapping tape on every body part. But what does taping even do? Should you or your kids be doing it too?

What Tape To Use?

There are a few different types of tape that are used at sporting clubs. They typically fall into one of two categories: rigid or flexible.

Rigid sports tape, or the brown tape you see most often on players, is used to restrict movement of a particular joint. This is commonly done to provide added stability to a joint when a player has previously injured a ligament that would normally keep a joint stable.

Flexible sports tape, such as Leukoband sports tape or Kinesiotape, is used to facilitate movement. This is typically done by adding compression or creating spring-like flexibility in a muscle or tendon to support and enhance its performance.

Does Taping Actually Work?

Even though tape is commonly used in sport, there is actually a lot of conflicting research regarding its actual effectiveness.

One study found that shoulder taping in healthy AFL footballers does not reduce the chances of shoulder dislocation or protect against reinjury (1). Other studies have shown mixed results with respect to improved performance (2). With the ankle, taping does reduce the risk of injury in athletes who have previously sprained an ankle, but it is unclear if taping can prevent a first-time sprain (3, 4). Taping techniques for athletes experiencing pain at the front of the knee have been found to be effective (5).

Regarding Kinesiotape (ex. K-Tape, Rocktape), most high-quality research has found that it does not enhance sport performance or protect against injury.

	Prevent Injury?	Enhance Performance?
Shoulder	NO	UNCLEAR
Ankle	UNCLEAR in healthy athletes YES with previous ankle sprain	NOT ENHANCED, but NOT COMPROMISED
Knee	YES for pain at front of knee	UNCLEAR
Kinesiotape	NO	NO

Mind Over Matter?

Beyond its physical effects, taping can improve confidence during sport, and can improve the perception of stability (7). This can be useful when first returning from an injury, as players can train and play matches without having to think about their injury, or second-guess their actions on field or on court.

In the spirit of gamesmanship, I have even seen players tape both injured and un-injured sides in an attempt to trick opposition players so they did not know which side was affected.

To Tape or Not To Tape?

In short, it depends.

If there has been no injury before, taping probably is not necessary and will not reduce the chance of injury. If there has been a previous injury, taping can be safely used to add stability without impacting performance. It can also help to improve confidence especially when returning from injury.

Importantly, taping should not be used as the only solution for an injury.

Players can often develop an over-reliance on taping, and become fearful of playing without strapping tape even after an injury resolves. Taping should instead be part of a comprehensive rehab approach, as guided by a physiotherapist. That way, players can become more confident in their bodies and natural abilities without having to rely solely on tape.

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