This meta-analysis investigated the effects of plyometric training (PT) on countermovement jump (CMJ) performance in soccer players of different ages and genders. Following the PRISMA and Cochrane methodological frameworks, we analyzed 14 studies with a total sample size of 476 athletes. Meta-regression analysis showed that PT had a medium effect size on CMJ performance (ES = 0.71, p < .001) and moderate heterogeneity (I² = 53%). Male athletes also showed consistently significant improvements in subgroup analysis (ES = 0.63, p < .001). Female athletes also showed significant improvements (ES = 0.56, p = 0.029) but showed greater fluctuations before correction for outliers. Analysis based on age showed that younger athletes (<14 years; ES = 0.47, I² = 0%) showed a smaller but very consistent effect, whereas older athletes (>17 years) showed larger improvements (ES = 1.10, p < 0.001), albeit with greater variability.These results highlight the overall effectiveness of PT in enhancing football players’ explosive muscular strength, more specifically on CMJ height. However, the data also indicates that there is a necessity for specific age and gender consideration for training design. It is crucial to uniform the methodology of reporting in further research, especially with large complex sample sizes.

Plyometric training Countermovement jump Soccer players