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Controversy Around Headers

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Return to Play in Football

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Abstract

Football is unique among sports in that players purposefully use their heads to move the ball. Heading the ball is considered an integral skill in football and occurs from youth to professional levels. Researchers have speculated that football heading may have adverse effects on players. These effects can be divided into (1) acute effects such as concussion and (2) chronic effects of repetitive heading such as cognitive and balance impairment. As a result of these purported adverse effects, and in spite of a lack of empirical evidence, some football organizations have enacted guidelines limiting exposure to heading in youth players. In regard to the role of heading on concussion, the evidence suggests that heading a ball is not likely to result in concussion. However, researchers indicate that approximately 15–30% of concussions in football are the result of head-to-head contact that results from attempted headers. In contrast, the research on the chronic effects of football heading is equivocal and characterized by inconsistent methodologies and findings. Findings from a recent meta-analytic review did not support any overall adverse effects of heading in football. Proper heading technique may mitigate any potential effects of heading and reduce incidence of concussion in football players.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Anthony P. Kontos Ph.D.

  2. UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, 3200 South Water Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15203, USA

    Anthony P. Kontos Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Anthony P. Kontos Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Anthony P. Kontos Ph.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

    Volker Musahl

  2. Department of Orthopaedics, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden

    Jón Karlsson

  3. Department of Trauma Surgery, University Medical Centre Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany

    Werner Krutsch

  4. Santa Monica, California, USA

    Bert R. Mandelbaum

  5. Clínica do Dragão, Espregueira-Mendes Sports Centre, Porto, Portugal

    João Espregueira-Mendes

  6. Orthopaedic Surgery, Aspetar Hospital, Doha, Qatar

    Pieter d'Hooghe

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Kontos, A.P. (2018). Controversy Around Headers. In: Musahl, V., Karlsson, J., Krutsch, W., Mandelbaum, B., Espregueira-Mendes, J., d'Hooghe, P. (eds) Return to Play in Football. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-55713-6_53

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-55713-6_53

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-662-55712-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-662-55713-6

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