Soccer Player and Mom Sue After Cleat Gets Stuck in Open Grate | SPORTS LAW UPDATE

In this week’s case, a youth was injured during a soccer game when his cleat became stuck in a drainage grate that surrounded the perimeter of the field where he was playing. Mother sued Long Island Junior Soccer Leagues and the school district, the owner of the field.

The League and the school filed a motion to dismiss pointing to the testimony of the young athlete that the accident occurred when he ran onto the drainage grate only a few feet from the edge of the field while he was retrieving a ball that had traveled out of bounds during the game. The player also stated that in order to gain access to the field, he had to walk over the silver-colored drainage grate that surrounded the perimeter of the field. Also, photographs confirmed the open and obvious nature of the grate, and there was no evidence that the grate was concealed or defective in any manner.

The court dismissed the case on the ground that the player assumed the risk of coming in contact with the open and obvious grate while engaging in the soccer game.

Pursuant to the doctrine of primary assumption of risk, a voluntary participant in a sporting or recreational activity consents to the risks that are associated with the sport, including risks associated with the construction of the playing field and any open and obvious condition – like the grate.

Here is the case: http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2018/2018_03853.htm