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FA dementia research ‘long-overdue’, says brain injury charity Main Image

FA dementia research ‘long-overdue’, says brain injury charity

Thu 23 Nov 2017

Leading brain injury charity Headway has said news that FA-commissioned research into the potential link between dementia and football will commence in January is welcomed but long overdue.

The research project, which is jointly funded by the Professional Footballers’ Association, will be led by Dr Willie Stewart and titled 'Football's Influence on Lifelong Health and Dementia Risk'.

Peter McCabe, Chief Executive of Headway – the brain injury association, said: “For years we have been calling on football authorities to initiate this research, and while we welcome the fact that action is finally being taken, it should never have taken so long to get to this point.

“We hope that this research will finally provide some answers to families who for too long have been fighting to gain a better understanding of whether or not their loved ones’ dementia was caused by heading a football.

 “Equally, players – and indeed parents – deserve answers on the question of whether or not they are at risk from today’s lightweight footballs, and we question whether or not this study will be able to provide any meaningful insight into this.”

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Headway - the brain injury association is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (Charity no. 1025852) and the Office of the Scottish Regulator (Charity no. SC 039992). Headway is a company limited by guarantee, registered in England no. 2346893.

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