Play smart, stay safe: reduce soccer injuries with the FIFA 11+ program

Soccer is one of the most popular sports globally, played by about 400 million people.

Playing soccer has many health benefits like reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.

However, soccer also carries a significant risk of injuries, especially to areas like the knee, ankle, and thigh.

These injuries often happen because players do not warm up effectively or lack strength and flexibility.

The FIFA 11+ is a program designed to prevent injuries and can be completed within training sessions.

FIFA 11+: made by professionals, for professionals and amateur athletes alike

To help prevent non-contact soccer injuries, a program called the FIFA 11+ was developed.

It is a simple warm-up routine with 15 exercises performed at least twice a week.

The warm-up is found for free online, takes about 10-15 minutes to complete and only requires a ball.

The FIFA 11+ program has been shown to effectively lower the risk of serious and common soccer injuries like ACL tears, hamstring and groin injuries.

This program can be adjusted to fit different ages and skill levels.

There are about 15-20 injuries for every 1,000 hours of soccer played by people under 15 years of age.

Findings have revealed that implementing the FIFA 11+ warm-up reduces injuries among young adult players by 30-39% in just two months.

These studies also demonstrated enhanced motor skills and neuromuscular performance, including better balance, increased quadriceps and overall muscle strength, speed, and agility.

The FIFA 11+ is a three-phase program targeting core stability, lower limb strength, static and dynamic balance and plyometrics.

It is recommended to perform the FIFA 11+ in every training session in conjunction with the usual warm-up and stretching routines at your club.

It is crucial to perform the exercises accurately to maximise their effectiveness, following the specified sequence.

Before each match, a shortened version (involving exercises 4, 5, and 8) of the FIFA 11+ should be performed to help prevent match-day injury.

The FIFA 11+ warm-up has successfully been applied, with some variation, in other sports such as basketball, netball, and AFL with great success.

Studies strongly indicate that when the FIFA 11+ is administered by a qualified physiotherapist, the effectiveness of injury prevention is optimised.

Read more about FIFA 11+ here.

Does it work for kids?

In 2016, FIFA11+ Kids was created by international experts, building on the FIFA11+ program.

It is specifically designed for children under 14 to prevent similar injuries to adults and additionally, minimise growth plate irritations.

The program lasts 15 minutes and includes seven exercises: a running game, two jumping exercises, a balance task, two stability exercises, and a technique for safer falling.

These exercises aim to reduce sports injuries in young football players by improving spatial awareness, attention, body stability, coordination, and teaching safe falling techniques.

Since its introduction, FIFA11+ Kids has been implemented globally among young football players.

Initially, it was not shown to decrease injury rates but was found to enhance sports performance in children aged 7-12 involved in football.

Improvements in dynamic balance, agility, and some aspects of motor skills were found, suggesting these enhancements might lower injury risks indirectly.

Recent studies though strongly indicate a significant reduction in overall injury rates (48% lower) among young football players using the program compared to those who didn’t.

Read more about FIFA 11+ Kids here.