Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. In the United States, 30% of households have a member playing the game, and 3 million American children play in youth soccer leagues.
Among 12 to 17 year adolescents, MLS is more popular than MLB. Children begin playing in pre-school, and their play may extend into college or beyond.
Many parents encourage their children to play soccer, since it is considered a non-contact sport and seems safe. But now, the latest research from neuropathologists at the University College London casts doubt on that assumption. Their work offers compelling evidence that soccer heading produces progressive brain damage and leads to heartbreaking dementia later in life.
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The researchers studied 14 retired soccer players who died having been diagnosed with dementia, and 12 out of 14 of them had advanced dementia. Their neurological symptoms began in midlife, only 15-20 years following their retirement from play.
The researchers obtained permission to study the brains of six players. Under the microscope, all six brains showed evidence of the abnormal tau protein accumulation typical of Alzheimer's dementia, and four of the six brains revealed the classic damage associated with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).
CTE is a progressive neurologic disease with very characteristic tissue changes in the brain. Initially recognized in boxers and found to be epidemic in football players, it has now been identified in those playing rugby, ice hockey, and wrestling. CTE has been diagnosed in 90 of 96 former NFL players, and many of them died in mid-life as the result of violent suicides. The disease may occur at a young age and progress rapidly, as a 17-year-old high school footballer died with evidence of CTE.
Some years ago, isolated cases of CTE were found in soccer players. This latest study conclusively confirms the association. Soccer-associated head trauma has been thought to be milder than that found in football or boxing as soccer players suffer fewer frank concussions or subconcussive events.
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