Title: FUNCTIONAL TRAINING APPROACHES FOR INJURY PREVENTION IN FOOTBALL: The Contribution of Strength Training, Unilateral Movements, and FMS-Guided Corrective Exercise
Authors: Armin Ze?irovi? , Rijad Ze?irovi? , Admira Koni?anin, Adem Preljevi? , Rifat Mujanovi?
Volume: 10
Issue: 9
Pages: 67-72
Publication Date: 2026/09/28
Abstract:
Football is characterized by repeated high-intensity actions, including sprinting, acceleration, deceleration, jumping, cutting, kicking, and single-leg landing. These demands contribute to a substantial burden of lower-extremity injuries and highlight the importance of effective exercise-based prevention strategies. The purpose of this review was to synthesize current evidence regarding three complementary functional training approaches for injury prevention in football: strength training, unilateral exercise, and corrective exercise guided by the Functional Movement Screen (FMS). Relevant evidence was identified from PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus, and CINAHL, with emphasis on systematic reviews, meta-analyses, randomized controlled trials, and prospective studies addressing football injury prevention, muscular strength, inter-limb asymmetry, neuromuscular control, movement screening, and corrective exercise. Current evidence indicates that structured strength-training interventions, particularly programs incorporating eccentric hamstring and adductor strengthening, can reduce the incidence of specific football injuries. Unilateral plyometric training appears effective for reducing lower-limb asymmetry, although evidence directly linking asymmetry reduction to lower injury incidence remains limited. FMS-guided corrective exercise can improve movement-quality scores; however, the ability of the FMS composite score to independently predict future injury remains uncertain. Multicomponent neuromuscular programs, particularly FIFA 11+, provide stronger evidence for practical injury prevention than isolated screening approaches. Overall, injury prevention in football should be based on an integrated model combining progressive strength training, unilateral exercises, neuromuscular control, appropriate load management, and individualized corrective exercise. The FMS should be regarded as a complementary assessment tool rather than a stand-alone injury prediction instrument.