What do Lionel Messi, Mike Tyson, Deni Avdija, and Tamir Blatt have in common? They all discovered the hard way that even an athlete's smile can shatter. It always happens at the most unexpected moment — an elbow to the face, an errant ball, an unplanned collision — and suddenly the world sees what the player least wants to expose.
That's exactly what happened to Stephen Curry, one of the NBA's biggest stars, who lost a front tooth during a playoff game. His signature smile crumbled on live television in front of millions of viewers. Within seconds, it became a viral meme, but behind the laughter lay a much larger truth: dental injuries aren't just curiosities. They're common, painful, and sometimes career-critical.
In an era where every movement is filmed from thousands of angles, there's no room for small mistakes. An athlete's face is their brand, their business card, the source of endorsement deals worth millions. A broken tooth isn't just "another minor injury" — it's an image blow that can affect self-confidence, the ability to face cameras, and how the public perceives the player. In today's world, a smile is no less important than performance.
Yet unlike a torn ACL or broken ankle, such injuries are considered "invisible." They don't make headlines or count in statistics. Players often return to practice with bleeding mouths as if nothing happened, while the damage may haunt them for years and pose a heavy financial burden.
The hidden cost of dental trauma
Broken teeth, torn gums, bruised jaws — research shows 40% of athletes in contact sports will experience a dental injury during their career. In the United States, estimates indicate a cost of about $15,000 to rehabilitate a single damaged tooth, and not always with full insurance coverage. Despite this, it's still treated as a marginal issue.
It's not uncommon in Israel either. Deni Avdija took a hard hit to the face during a game in Washington and lost half a tooth on camera. The incident, which occurred during a live broadcast, became a topic of conversation and viral buzz on social media within minutes. Tamir Blatt, a Maccabi Tel Aviv player, suffered a dental injury in his youth and learned that a small blow could be very costly. In contrast, Ben Saraf, the young star everyone's talking about, chose a different path: prevention. He understood that his smile is an asset no less important than his shooting.
And it's not just basketball. We've seen well-known athletes suffer dental injuries during their careers. Lionel Messi lost a tooth in 2017 during a match against Real Madrid when he received an elbow to the face from Marcelo. Mike Tyson suffered tooth damage during his boxing matches. These stories highlight how tooth damage can affect not only health but also an athlete's self-confidence and image.
Those who think these are isolated cases should think again. Many dental clinics in Israel are filled with "open-mouthed" stories. A youth goalkeeper in handball arrived after facial trauma with two broken front teeth and was more frustrated about how he'd look at school the next day than about the pain. A basketball player from the national league arrived with a broken jaw after a struggle under the basket, an injury that forced him to sit on the bench for two months and begin a long recovery process before returning to the court. A soccer player from the national league had to undergo front tooth implantation after an unplanned header collision, taking months before he dared to return to the field and face head-to-head defenses.
Global recognition, local lag
The world has already made the switch. There's an international body, the Academy for Sports Dentistry, that brings together doctors specializing in sports dental medicine. Yes, it's a real official specialization. The organization works to raise awareness about facial, oral, and jaw injuries in sports, holds international conferences connecting research, knowledge sharing, and professional training, thus enhancing the popularity of sports dental medicine worldwide.
In European and American sports clubs, NBA teams, and Olympic squads, the dentist is already an integral part of the medical staff, alongside the orthopedist and physiotherapist.
In the United States, April is designated as National Facial Protection Month, an initiative aimed at emphasizing the importance of using mouthguards and facial protection equipment, and making statistical knowledge and guidance accessible to caregivers, athletes, parents of athletes, and the general public. The doctor's role is not only to repair breaks after injury but also to prevent the next injury.
In contrast, Israel is still in the early stages of this field. Dentists who deal with rehabilitating sports dental injuries are a minority, and most athletes don't receive the necessary protection. However, awareness is beginning to rise, more teams are recommending prevention, and the issue is receiving more attention. Still, it's not enough.
As long as the smile remains in "the invisible zone," athletes will continue to pay an unnecessary health, financial, and image price. In today's sports world, where one smile can become an icon and the player's face is an integral part of the brand they represent, prevention is the thin line between a painful injury and continued smooth play, between a whole smile and expensive repair.
Gal Fleitman is a former athlete who played in premier leagues in volleyball and is now an entrepreneur and founder of Fleitman Mouthguard
First published: 13:43, 09.08.25