1Cardiff Metropolitan University, Department of Sport & Health Sciences, Wales UK
Injury Prevention Strategies in Football: A Systematic Review
Sport Mont 2020, 18(3), 109-113 | DOI: 10.26773/smj.201001
Abstract
Football is perhaps the most physically-demanding sport in the world, as players are obliged to play a high number of games in one season, with recovery breaks being short and mostly insufficient. As a consequence, injury rates are high among players, and their participation in the games is adversely affected, which, in turn, adds a tremendous financial and psychological burden for players and clubs alike at all levels (amateur, semi-professional, elite). This study reviews the most effective contemporary injury prevention strategies in football and the scientific evidence behind them. It also aims to determine the benefits and the applicability of these strategies in youth, men, and women at all performance levels. The standard systematic review methodology was modified and adapted for this review, and electronic search tools were used to locate the papers needed. A total of 44 studies were analysed. We have isolated five injury prevention strategies developed by researchers as the most effective to reduce the number of injuries and even to enhance performance to a certain degree: Fifa 11+, foam-rolling techniques, strength training for injury prevention, pre-activation routines, and core training. We evaluated these in relation to their scientific substrate and to their applicability in the training programmes introduced by sports scientists as well as strength and conditioning coaches on the pitch. In conclusion, our present systematic review revealed these five main injury prevention strategies as the most effective and popular ones at present.
Keywords
injury prevention, methods, soccer, strength and conditioning
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