Does the 11+ injury prevention programme improve fundamental movement patterns in amateur male soccer players compared to a standard warm-up?
The 11+ injury prevention program did not produce significantly greater improvements in fundamental movement patterns compared to a standard warm-up, though it did increase the proportion of players scoring above the injury risk threshold.
No studies have assessed whether changes in an individual's fundamental movement patterns can be achieved with the 11+ prevention programme in soccer players. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of the 11+ compared with a standard warm-up on fundamental movement patterns using the Functional Movement Screen (FMS) in amateur male soccer players. Twenty-three male soccer players (age: 24.7.3.8 years; height: 1.770.58 m; body mass: 73.96.2 kg) were randomly assigned to the 11+ (n= 12) or control (n= 11) group. The intervention programme had to be carried out 3 times a week over 6 weeks. The 11+ warm-up lasted ~25 minutes and was conducted before starting regular practice, replacing the team's standard warm-up. The control group warmed up with standard jogging, ball exercises, and active stretching to match the duration of the 11+. Within-group analysis revealed significant improvements in the FMS total score in the 11+ (+10.51%; d= 0.83) and control group (+7.99%; d= 0.68) from pre-test to post-test. In the between-group analysis, there were no significant differences between groups. At the posttest a significantly greater number of players in the 11+ group exhibited a score that improved to above the injury threshold (14) (p= 0.046). This study suggests that regular implementation of the 11+ injury prevention programme may not produce additional improvements in fundamental movement patterns other than those produced by a standard warm-up.
Rey et al. (Mon,) studied this question.