Pain in the back of the heel in many sports and physical activities is often a sign of Achilles Tendinopathy. However, kicking sports such as football and soccer and particularly in soccer due to the angle at which the ball is kicked, the pain is more likely to be related to a condition called posterior   impingement , where structures at the back of the foot are being repetitively compressed during the kicking motion, which involves what we refer to as plantarflexion. To see