THE £4.5m compensation payout to Manchester United academy star Ben Collett could be the first of an avalanche of sports injury pay-outs, a Liverpool solicitor has warned.
Simon Gibson, a partner at Kirwans and head of the firm's personal injury specialist, also said teams will have to review their risk assessments and could see a painful rise in insurance premiums.
Collett, now 23, was awarded the record payout at the High Court last week after his leg was broken in two places by a crunching tackle from Middlesbrough's Gary Smith in May, 2003.
Gibson, 31, said previously he had advised injured sports professionals that they had slim chance of winning a compensation case. But the Collett case, he added, had changed how the law viewed on-field activity.
Gibson told the Daily Post: "Courts are now recognising that participants in sport are not immune from the same rules that govern us all. You must not behave recklessly.
"If a professional player suffers an injury, it would be remarkable if they didn't have this case in mind.
"We do have a precedent here and if the evidence is as strong as this case you would think they would go ahead."
He added that footballers will not be the only competitors considering making a claim, but rugby players, martial artists and boxers could all potentially launch successful actions.
But to secure an award as substantial as Collett's, they would have to prove they would have gone on to earn as much as the Old Trafford hopeful.
In his ruling, the judge said he was convinced Collett would have secured a three-year deal with Manchester United. At an earlier hearing in Manchester, Sir Alex Ferguson had described the youngster as an "outstanding" player.
Gibson added: "The difficulty in advising clients is how far do they need to go? Do managers need to give warnings to players? Give them additional training?
"It would be nonsense to say to Tranmere 'You must tell your players no to go in too hard'. But this is a case they need to bear in mind.
"I think that the idea that the state of competitive sport should change because of a case is a worrying one. What it will change is the approach taken to these injuries after they happen."
Smith's challenge on Collett was so severe, Middlesbrough decided not to argue over liability.
"What has to be proved is that it was not just a bad tackle, but it was reckless - that it was outside the normal ambit of sport," Gibson said.