Affiliations: [a] Department of Rehabilitation Science, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi, India | [b] Department of Physical Therapy, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Shibili Nuhmani, Department of Physical Therapy, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, P.O. Box 2435, Dammam 31451, Saudi Arabia. Tel.: +966 554270531; E-mail: snuhmani@iau.edu.sa.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: The FIFA-Medical and Assessment Research Centre developed FIFA 11+ program as a warm-up program for soccer players. Although the FIFA 11+ program is a well-established warm-up protocol for injury prevention among soccer players, the program’s performance enhancement aspect is not frequently discussed in the literature. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of the FIFA 11+ training program on functional performance in amateur male soccer players. METHODS: The study included 57 amateur male soccer players from Jamia Hamdard University, who were randomly placed in an experimental group (n= 29) or a control group (n= 28). The experimental group underwent the FIFA 11+ training program for 12 weeks (five times per week) and the control group continued their regular training. The study adopted a pretest-posttest design. The outcome measurements included the following tests: vertical jump, 20-yard sprint run, Illinois agility run test, and t-tests. RESULTS: Vertical jump and sprint speed were significantly improved in the FIFA 11+ program group compared to the control group (p< 0.05). No statistically significant difference in agility parameters (p> 0.05) was found between the groups. CONCLUSION: The results show that the FIFA 11+ program may improve the performance of young amateur soccer players. This study may serve as the foundation for further studies with larger participant numbers.
