Football chiefs ban heading in training for young children

Football chiefs in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland on Monday announced a ban on heading in training for children up to the end of primary school, to take place with immediate effect.

The three football associations issued a statement confirming changes to their heading guidance, which followed a study that showed former footballers were 3.5 times more likely to die from neurodegenerative disease.

The changes stated there would be no heading at all in the "foundation phase" -- for primary school children -- and a graduated approach to heading in training in under-12s to under-16s football.

There will be no change in terms of heading in matches, taking into consideration the limited number of headers.

The study, led by the University of Glasgow, did not state that heading a ball was the cause of the increased prevalence of neurodegenerative conditions among footballers, but the decision to update the guidelines has been taken to "mitigate against any potential risks", the FA said in a statement.

English FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said: "This updated heading guidance is an evolution of our current guidelines and will help coaches and teachers to reduce and remove repetitive and unnecessary heading from youth football.

"Our research has shown that heading is rare in youth football matches, so this guidance is a responsible development to our grassroots coaching without impacting the enjoyment that children of all ages take from playing the game."
"It is important to reassure that heading is rare in youth football matches, but we are clear that the guidelines should mitigate any potential risks."