Virtual reality for enhancing athletic performance

Abstract

This systematic review evaluates the effectiveness of Virtual Reality (VR) technology in enhancing athletic performance across physical, technical, and psychological domains, including injury rehabilitation contexts, through a comprehensive search of Scopus, PubMed, and Science Direct databases from inception to October 10, 2025, following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, which identified 793 articles, of which 7 experimental studies met the inclusion criteria after duplicate removal (n = 304), title and abstract screening (n = 489), and full-text eligibility assessment. The included studies demonstrated heterogeneous designs, samples, and outcome measures, yet consistently showed promising VR effects on physical performance outcomes (increased power output during HIIT by +5–19W, improved sprint and shuttle run performance), technical and motor skills (enhanced shooting performance, imagery skills, motor response time, and joint stability), and psychological outcomes (reduced cognitive and somatic anxiety, increased self-confidence, lower perceived pain, and higher enjoyment). However, methodological quality varied considerably, and the small number of studies, short intervention durations, and diverse sport contexts preclude strong generalizations, indicating that while VR is a promising supplementary training tool for controlled, psychologically demanding, and rehabilitation-focused environments, the field remains nascent, and this review provides a conceptual framework and structured research agenda to guide future investigations toward more rigorous, standardized, and ecologically valid studies.