Retired footballers at higher risk of neurodegenerative-related deaths
A study by the University of Glasgow has found that retired professional footballers are three-and-a-half times more likely to die due to neurodegenerative disease.
Reasons for the deaths of 7,676 former male professional footballers from Scotland between the start of the 20th century to 1976 were analysed alongside 23,000 of the public’s.
This also stated that the number of retired pros dying were lower than presumed before they reached 70 years-old, while people over this age passed away at a higher rate than imagined.
The FIELD study’s Dr Willie Stewart said: “This is the largest study to date looking in this detail at the incidence of neurodegenerative disease in any sport, not just professional footballers.
“This analysis revealed that risk ranged from a five-fold increase in Alzheimer’s disease, through an approximately four-fold increase in motor neurone disease, to a two-fold Parkinson’s disease in former professional footballers compared to population controls.”
It also revealed that issues such as heart disease and cancers such as lung cancer were lower among former players.
“As such, whilst every effort must be made to identify the factors contributing to the increased risk of neurodegenerative disease to allow this risk to be reduced, there are also wider potential health benefits of playing football to be considered,” Stewart continued.
Greg Clarke, the chairman of the Football Association in England, added: “It is important that the global football family now unites to find the answers and provide a greater understanding of this complex issue. The FA is committed to doing all it can to make that happen.”
The Scottish FA has since responded to the study, saying that it will have a meeting with others at UEFA and FIFA to create a ‘global response’ to the issue.
Chief Executive Ian Maxwell said: “While the research is based purely on the professional game and will be discussed at the Professional Game Board, through the Non-Professional Game Board we will also consider any implications for the grassroots game.”
High-profile players who competed in Scotland’s top league have lost their lives in recent years due to similar conditions.
Ex-Rangers player Fernando Ricksen died in September after a six-year MND battle, while former Celtic captain Billy McNeill died in April after developing dementia in 2017.
McNeill’s European Cup-winning team-mate Jimmy Johnstone passed away in 2006 following a MND battle.
Ricksen was remembered earlier in October as his national team, the Netherlands, played Northern Ireland in a European Championships qualifier.
