Salmon, Danielle MBadenhorst, MareliseKeung, SierraKerr, Zachary YukioRegister‐Mihalik, Johna KRomanchuk, JanelleSullivan, S JohnSutherland, ChristinaWhatman, ChrisWalters, Simon R2025-04-152025-04-152024-11-05European Journal of Sport Science, ISSN: 1746-1391 (Print); 1536-7290 (Online), Wiley, 24(12), 1883-1902. doi: 10.1002/ejsc.122131746-13911536-7290http://hdl.handle.net/10292/19066Concerns around concussion highlight the need for strategies to improve the implementation and translation of concussion guidelines in community sports. This study assessed players' utilisation and compliance with New Zealand Rugby's Concussion Management Pathway (CMP). This pragmatic, mixed methods study comprised of concussion injury surveillance and mapping of players' healthcare touchpoints through the CMP. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted to understand stakeholders' experiences. Over the season, 27 different healthcare pathways were identified with 28% of players progressing through all phases of the CMP (ideal pathway). Of the 206 suspected concussions reported over the season, 70% were logged in the CMP phone App, and 89% of these had an associated valid baseline concussion assessment. Prior to returning to contact training, 64% of players obtained a medical clearance. One theme, ‘belief in the value of pathway’ was identified as a facilitator across all CMP components. Themes such as ‘concussion knowledge and the nature of concussion’; ‘communication between stakeholders and sufficient information on the process’; and ‘strong relationships and clarity around responsibilities’ were identified as facilitators across several pathway components. Other facilitators included ‘ease and timing of general practitioner access’; ‘the phone App as facilitator to logging’; and ‘spotting for concussion as a team’. Additionally, the findings signify baseline testing as a potential pre‐cursor to overall CMP compliance. Strategies that support the facilitators identified in this study may further enhance compliance.© 2024 The Author(s). European Journal of Sport Science published by Wiley-VCH GmbH on behalf of European College of Sport Science. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/communicationcommunity perceptionsconcussiondelivery of healthcare4203 Health Services and Systems42 Health SciencesNeurosciencesTraumatic Head and Spine InjuryPhysical Injury - Accidents and Adverse EffectsTraumatic Brain Injury (TBI)Brain Disorders8.1 Organisation and delivery of servicesGeneric health relevance0913 Mechanical Engineering1106 Human Movement and Sports SciencesSport Sciences4207 Sports science and exercise5201 Applied and developmental psychologyHumansBrain ConcussionNew ZealandFootballMaleAthletic InjuriesYoung AdultAdultGuideline AdherenceReturn to SportHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeHumansBrain ConcussionAthletic InjuriesHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeFootballAdultGuideline AdherenceNew ZealandMaleYoung AdultReturn to SportHumansBrain ConcussionNew ZealandFootballMaleAthletic InjuriesYoung AdultAdultGuideline AdherenceReturn to SportHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeJournal ArticleOpenAccess10.1002/ejsc.12213