You may have seen the black, University of Miami Sports Medicine Institute medical tent staffed with UM athletic trainers on the sidelines at Football Club Prime competitions – now you’ll also see the Institute’s logo on FC Prime uniforms and on home field sidelines. The UM Sports Medicine Institute is FC Prime’s newest sponsor and official health care partner, delivering the excellence of academic sports medicine to FC Prime players and game-day guests for the prevention, treatment and recovery of sports-related injuries.

“I have first-hand experience with the University of Miami Sports Medicine Institute and am humbled by this partnership,” said FC Prime Director of Coaching Tricia Taliaferro. “They represent excellence in every aspect of sports medicine research and patient care. At FC Prime, we strive to only be associated with the best and this partnership is a perfect example. We look forward to supplying our families with access to the most professional and expert sports medicine provider possible.”

In addition to being the official uniform sponsor of the club and provider of athletic trainer coverage at FC Prime games, the UM Sports Medicine Institute partnership brings value to FC Prime families by offering expedited access for the treatment of sports-related injuries, and other advanced, sub-specialized health care that is only available at UHealth – University of Miami Health System, the region’s only academic medical center.

“Being a partner of FC Prime and participating in the medical care of the club’s athletes is a tremendous opportunity to contribute to keeping these young people healthy and competitive,” said Lee Kaplan, M.D., a professor of orthopaedic surgery at the UM Miller School of Medicine, the Petra and Stephen Levin Endowed Chair in Sports Medicine, and director of the UM Sports Medicine Institute. “In addition to being a sports medicine surgeon, I’m also a parent with children of my own; that’s one reason this partnership is especially meaningful to me as an opportunity to bring the expertise of the Institute to benefit FC Prime players and their families.”    

In addition to providing expert care, UM Sports Medicine Institute physicians will provide FC Prime athletes with group presentations during exclusive club events and blog posts on the FC Prime website. Topics will include injury prevention, athletic performance and training, concussion, injury treatment and recovery, and proper hydration and nutrition.

Keep an eye on this space for more updates on how the University of Miami Sports Medicine Institute and FC Prime are collaborating to assure FC Prime’s young athletes have access to the best, most expert sports injury prevention and care.