ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the existing literature and a description of the relationship between the training elements of Soccer Fitness, the training-induced effects of Soccer Fitness on cardiovascular, metabolic and musculoskeletal fitness. It is the potential of Soccer Fitness for the prevention and treatment of lifestyle diseases. The average heart rate during Soccer Fitness training sessions lasting 45—60 min has been shown to be 80—90 percent of individual maximal heart rate in untrained women and men, which is actually similar to values obtained for elite soccer players during match play. Soccer is by far the most popular sport in the world, with an estimated 400 million people playing regularly in sports clubs or on an unorganized basis, but there is a potential for even higher global participation. Soccer Fitness is a new type of soccer that can attract new participant groups, as it focuses on soccer training among friends in small groups rather than on competition.
