New research shows concerning ‘distinctive pressure waves’ from heading footballs

“We can’t say exactly what the damage is or how it’s working, but we know from the laws of physics it’s something we should be aware of; it’s an energy which is being put into the head,” Harland adds.

Another standout point from the paper, published in The Journal of Sports Engineering and Technology, was that leather-style footballs from the 20th century produced “peak pressures” impact forces four times higher when wet — a result they called “substantial”.

Balls with more modern designs — specifically the kind that are synthetic machine-stitched and have been used at elite levels of the game since 2016 — returned the least severe impact forces and were more water-resistant.

Ninety per cent of the energy transfer was found to occur within the first 500 microseconds (0.0005 seconds) of contact with the head.

“The thing that is governing that energy right at that point in the collision is those material constructions within the shell of the balls,” Phillips says.

“We tested different balls from throughout the last century, including leather ones, hand-stitched synthetic and the modern stitchless balls. We see rather large differences between: up to 55 times in terms of the energy transfer (between older and newer balls) purely based on shell materials and construction — which is obviously quite a big finding.”

Across the 20 footballs tested, 90 per cent of the energy transfer to the head was found to happen within the first 500 microseconds (0.0005 seconds) of contact.

Seven subcategories of ball were considered, based on their design, manufacturing and the era in which they were/are used. A total of 430 “collisions” were recorded across three different trials, to mimic speeds from corner kicks, aerial passes and shots, in both wet and dry conditions.

They created a half-skull based on measurements provided by MRI data from the Institute of Science Tokyo, which had been designed to represent the average (50th percentile) male player. An embedded sensor measured the pressure waves, and no meaningful changes were identified when they made adjustments to the skull geometry.

“We developed a pretty bespoke set of apparatus in the lab to do it in a very controlled, realistic sense,” says Phillips. Loughborough is widely considered the leading sports university in the UK and has particular long-standing expertise in ball testing — Phillips’ PhD focused on potential subconcussive brain injuries from heading.

Harland cites Professor Paul Lepper, his PhD supervisor from the 1990s and an underwater acoustician, as instrumental in the four-strong multidisciplinary research team. Dr Sean Mitchell, also involved, provided important mathematical and theoretical insight. “I can’t imagine another combination of people that would have been able to put these jigsaw pieces together,” Harland says proudly.

He and Phillips are also grateful to the FA, not just for providing a grant to fund the research but also for its trust and interest. They met FA staff twice yearly while the study was ongoing to provide updates. “It’s fair to say we’ve taken them on a journey,” Harland adds.

“They must have thought we were crazy, because nobody else was talking about this,” he says of the early phase of research. “Once you have evidence, it’s really difficult to deny what that evidence is saying. They’ve been good partners.”

The FA has been a leading association in terms of rethinking convention around heading and providing guidance for the youth game — it is up to its officials, Harland says, if and how Loughborough’s research changes its stance in these areas.

After testing in 2020, theFA first introduced guidance around heading, and two years later it implemented the International Football Association Board (the sport’s lawmakers) trial, banning headers within grassroots matches for the under-12s age group and below. In a press release, an FA spokesperson said it has shared the results of the Loughborough study with European football’s governing body UEFA and FIFA, its global equivalent, and that it supports further research.

These findings come at a poignant time within the Premier League too, as a shift back towards direct attacking and a set-piece emphasis has increased heading demands. Aerial duels are at a five-year high, while headed clearances and the share of attempts on goal which are headers in 2025-26 have both eclipsed the past seven seasons.

Phillips and Harland are interested in how footballs may be manufactured and tested in the future, specifically for ensuring a design (and selection) focus on those which produce the lowest pressure waves. “Very subtle changes to materials and construction, without changing the game,” is what Phillips hopes for.

“We already work with some ball partners, we’re reaching out to others,” Harland says. “We think we can make some progress here in reducing the energy which is transferred through pressure waves — regardless of whether we know how dangerous those are.

“There are some very smart people in materials development, ball construction and so on. We’re pretty confident that they will be able to develop recipes that will reduce this further.”

The Loughborough team consider this only the start of the journey of understanding the mechanics and neurological impact(s) of heading.

“That may take a number of years. Our feeling is that the clock is ticking — it’s been ticking for some time already,” Harland says.

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

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