Implementation of the FIFA 11+ referees injury prevention program among soccer referees

Abstract

Background and aim: Soccer referees have significant risk of injuries, particularly to the lower limbs. A growing body of research supports the use of injury prevention programs to prevent such injuries, yet participation rates in these programs by soccer referees is still not been investigated. The Fédération International de Football Association (FIFA) 11+ Referees Injury Prevention Program (FIFA 11+ Referees Program) is a structured warm‐up program specially designed to prevent injuries in soccer referees. Therefore, this study aimed to assess soccer referees’ awareness, implementation, and opinion of the FIFA 11+ Referees Injury Prevention Program’s efficacy. Materials and methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used. The questionnaires were provided by aGoogle spreadsheet. The survey consisted of six questions covering country, gender, type of soccer, awareness of FIFA 11+, implementation of the FIFA 11+ referees’ practices, and opinion about participation. Questions that sought awareness of injury prevention programs had answers of either yes/no. Questions that sought implementation of injury prevention programs were answered only by aware participants and answers were yes/no; if the answer was yes, it moves to a question related to which exercise components are used in the field, and the answersweremultiple choice. Questions about their opinion of the effectiveness of the program to prevent injuries wereonly answered by participants who are implementing the FIFA 11+ program and collected on a scale of 0 (ineffective) to 10 (highly effective). The survey was available in Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Turkish. Results: A total of 727 soccer referees completed the survey. Only 234 (32.2%) of the participants were aware of the FIFA 11+ Referees Program, and 208 (28.6%) were implementing the FIFA 11+ Referees Program in their current practice. Participants who are implementing the FIFA 11+ Referees Program reported a positive opinion about the program efficacywith a score of 7.5 ±1.3 out of 10. The results suggested that improving awareness of the FIFA 11+ Referees Program could increase the implementation, which could help to reduce injuries. Conclusion: Good levels of implementation werereported among the participants who reported awareness of the FIFA 11+ Referees Injury Prevention Program. In addition,participants who are implementing the program reported a positive opinion about the FIFA 11+ Referees Injury Prevention Program efficacy.