Premier League mouthguard study to decide limited headers in training
EXCLUSIVE: The data acquired from PROTECHT mouthguards, which players will wear in training, could potentially be used if mandatory restrictions are ever introduced.
Premier League mouthguard study set to decide potential limits on headers in training - as PFA launches investigation to assess English football's dementia problem
- The Premier League are initiating a mouthguard study on headers in training
- Twelve clubs across the Premier League, EFL, WSL will take part in the project
- The PFA also began an operation to learn the extent of football's dementia crisis
- Players' union want to discover how many ex-pros are living with the disease
- They are calling on families to come forward as part of a 'consultation exercise'
- Sportsmail has campaigned for better care of those with dementia since 2020
PUBLISHED: 22:31 BST, 9 May 2022 | UPDATED: 22:33 BST, 9 May 2022
The Premier League are initiating a mouthguard study to determine how many times a player should be allowed to head the ball in training.
Currently it is recommended that footballers should not exceed 10 'high force' headers per week, such as those from long passes or crosses, but it is hoped this latest research will provide greater, more precise guidelines.
The data acquired from PROTECHT mouthguards, which players will wear in training sessions, could potentially be used if mandatory restrictions are ever introduced into the English game.
Twelve clubs across the Premier League, EFL and Women's Super League will take part in the project, after Liverpool and Manchester City were involved in similar research last season.
The PFA have also launched an initiative — to learn the full extent of the dementia problem in English football.
The players' union want to discover how many former footballers are living with neurodegenerative disease and are calling on families to come forward as part of a 'major consultation exercise'.
They hope evidence of this problem will show other stakeholders — such as the FA and the Premier League — why establishing an industry-wide care fund is necessary, and help dementia in football be recognised as an industrial disease.
Sportsmail has been campaigning for greater care of former footballers with dementia since 2020.
We have heard the tragic stories of ex-players whose families are being left to cover £4,000-a-month care home costs, taking them to the brink of bankruptcy and mental anguish.
Announcing their plan on Monday, PFA chief executive Maheta Molango said: 'Former players and their families need help right now.
'The conversations being had need to result in tangible support and, crucially, significant funding.'
Professor Willie Stewart's FIELD study in 2019 found former footballers are three-and-a-half times more likely to die with neurodegenerative disease.
Dawn Astle, the daughter of the legendary Jeff Astle, who now works with the PFA on improving their neurodegenerative care, said: 'I hope this process will encourage more former players to come forward and help further demonstrate the sheer scale of the issue.'