Guidance designed to limit the amount of heading players do in training will be introduced at all levels of English football next season, it was announced Wednesday. Clubs in the Premier League, Football League, Women’s Super League and in all grassroots football, as well across all sections of the England set-up are set to receive the new advice, designed to reduce the risk of brain injury from heading a football.Wayne Rooney causes on-and-off-pitch media commotion againThe move has been agreed by England’s governing Football Association, Premier League, English Football League, Professional Footballers Association and League Managers Association. Professional clubs will be requested to limit high-force headers — those following a long pass of more than 35 metres or from crosses, corners and free-kicks — to 10 per training week, while also developing individual player profiles which will help tailor their training needs.The guidance for amateur clubs is for heading practice to be limited to one session per week and no more than 10 headers per session. But, significantly, none of the new advice applies to match days. There are also concerns the guidance makes no distinction between men and women, despite increasing evidence that women are more susceptible to brain injury.He’s not a changed man after all! Joey Barton was arrested amid accusations of beating his wifeNor does the latest advice impose any new limits on heading in youth football, with guidelines for the junior game having been announced in February 2020. Decades of anecdotal evidence have suggested a link between repeated heading of a football and brain injury, something that was given legal force following a 2002 inquest into the death of former England striker Jeff Astle. It found heading leather footballs had contributed to brain trauma prior to his death.”Our heading guidance now reaches across all players, at all levels of the game” said FA chief executive Mark Bullingham, who added officials were committed to further medical research.© Agence France-Presse
