Study to determine if ex-footballers face higher risk of getting dementia

A Glasgow-based research team will investigate whether former footballers are more likely to suffer from dementia later in life than the general public.

The new study, which is titled Football’s Influence on Lifelong Health and Dementia Risk (FIELD), will start in January.

The research will be led by Dr William Stewart and colleagues at the University of Glasgow and the Hampden Sports Clinic.

Co-funded by the Football Association and the Professional Footballers’ Associa- tion, the study has been two years in the planning and will look at the physical and mental health outcomes of about 15,000 former professional footballers and compare them to the wider population.

The announcement comes after wide criticism of football authorities’ failure to address the dementia question sooner.

The concern has been on the national agenda ever since former England and West Brom star Jeff Astle died in 2002 with what the coroner described as an “industrial injury”.

Famed for his prowess at heading the ball, Astle died of a degenerative brain disease that was later identified by Dr Stewart in 2014 as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). The condition has traditionally been associated with boxers.

Since Astle’s death, the families of dozens of other ex-footballers, including several from England’s 1966 World Cupwinning squad, have come forward to reveal their stories of dealing with dementia and related illnesses.

Previous research efforts have had mixed results.

If the latest study does establish that ex-footballers are more vulnerable to dementialike illnesses, further research will be needed.