Head banned

As a child, a goal is rarely scored. Partly because of an unattainable height of the ball, partly because only the most intuitive ones contemplate an option that comes by chance for the rest. To top off you arrive with training and repetition. English football is something else. The idea of ​​bringing the ball to the opposite goal as soon as possible is part of the DNA of the English fan. The center and the head shot have been bread and salt for decades. The English Football Federation (FA), to which Scottish and Irish have joined, has decided that there is more risk than promise in this practice for minors. The new training guide for clubs and sports centers advises effusively to prevent children between 6 and 11 years old from training to head.

The new guidelines derive from a medical study conducted three years ago, commissioned by the FA, among almost 8,000 former players born between 1900 and 1976. Almost 1,200 of them had died then, but the National Health Service contributed to the crossing of medical data . The report concluded that soccer players were 3.5 times more likely to suffer dementia in their old age than the average population with similar characteristics. However, they were not definitive data, and the report did not establish a direct relationship between the use of head play and some type of neurodegenerative disease. But he raised enough alert that the FA decided to put the bandage before the wound.

MORE INFORMATION

• Study finds brain injuries in 99% of former NFL players
• The United States will prohibit heading the soccer ball to children

“Our research has shown that there is rarely a head game in games with minors, and we understand that this guide is simply a responsible development of training in the first levels, without having the least impact on the enjoyment of the sport of children of all the ages, ”said FA president Mark Bullingham.

Prudence, however, will not be at odds with the competition. The organization has already made it clear that the new rules will only affect training. No head goal will be void in youth league matches. In fact, the guide proposes that from the age of 12 until the age of 16 the technique is gradually incorporated into daily practices. On condition that the size of the regulatory ball is adjusted at each age. “The update of all these rules is to help coaches eliminate a repetitive and unnecessary pitch in children's football during the first years. It will be combined with an introductory phase at the age that our medical experts consider the most appropriate, ”said the president of the Scottish federation, Ian Maxwell.

“It seems perfect, and I understand that it can be a health risk. We never do this kind of repetitive training, ”says Tomás Ruiz, director of the Cañada Blanch Soccer School in London. Connoisseur of Spanish and English football, Ruiz cannot avoid a small smile upon hearing the news. “Everyone here plays above, and much more directly. In Spain that is already overcome. So, welcome is the decision, but I think they are also looking to change a way of playing that in the Premier League has already changed, but it is still very common in the minor leagues, ”he argues.

Charities focused on brain injuries have welcomed the decision, but believe it falls short. “We cannot allow moving forward with a series of issues that have not yet been resolved. At what age is it safe to use your head in the game? Is it safe at any age? Nor can we allow ourselves within 30 years for a new sufficiently broad study to give us a negative response. Not to mention the introduction of common sense measures that protect players, such as certain protective clothing, ”concludes Peter McCabe, president of the Headway association.

You can follow EL PAÍS Sports on Facebook, Twitter or subscribe here to the Newsletter.