Soccer injury prevention programs coming

by Morinville News Staff

The federal government announced a $2 million investment Thursday aimed at reducing injuries in Canadian youth soccer players. The joint venture will see the Public Health Agency of Canada and FIFA investing $1 million over four years for the initiative.

The financial investment will support two soccer injury prevention programs: FIFA 11+ and Movement Preparation.
FIFA’s Medical Assessment and Research Centre developed the FIFA 11+ program that targets youth 14 and older, offering a series of exercises aimed at strengthening core and leg muscles. The exercises are believed to improve neuromuscular control, coordination, balance, agility and jump technique.

Canadian Sport for Life developed the Movement Preparation program, a physical literacy program that uses similar exercises to the FIFA 11+, but targets soccer players aged 7 to 13.

The government said the goal of both programs is to reduce injury rates among youth playing soccer while “keeping them active, healthy and injury-free, on the field and off.” Both programs will be implemented in community soccer clubs across the country as early as this fall.

Morinville currently subscribes to the Sport for Life model through their various sports programs, including this summer’s two Sports Camps. The goal is to create lifelong skills that are transferable from sport to sport.