Why are some players wearing face masks at the World Cup?

You may have noticed some players wearing unusual facial furniture at this summer's Fifa World Cup.

England's full-back Djed Spence is one of them, but they are not just a new trend.

They are actually protective masks designed and molded especially to fit each player's face or jaw.

Spence is having to wear his during the whole tournament due to an injury he picked up in the final stages of the Premier League season.

The Tottenham player was injured when he was hit by an elbow to the face from Chelsea striker Liam Delap during their match in May.

Rather than going through surgery immediately and possibly ruling himself out of contention for the World Cup squad, Spence chose to wear the jaw protector instead, so he could still compete.

Uruguay's Sebastian Caceres is also wearing a mask covering his eyes and right cheekbone.

Much like Spence, Caceres picked up his facial injury during the domestic season while playing for Club America in the Mexican top division.

It was a nasty knock to the face, which resulted in concussion and a fracture in a part of his skull.

Luckily he received immediate medical attention and has been through an intensive rehab process to get him safely to the World Cup stage.

In order to help the area heal and prevent any further damage, he must wear the mask when he is training and playing.

Stefan Posch, who plays in defense for the Austrian national side, is another player with a protective accessory.

Unfortunately, Posch took a knock to the chin in the team's opening World Cup game against Jordan, resulting in a 3-1 win but a broken jaw - ouch!

His coach said he had to travel to Los Angeles twice to have his mask fitted but was able to play in their second group game against Argentina.