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The DFB youth Bundestag assembly in Duisburg last weekend agreed further guidelines for heading in children’s and youth football.
The German FA will implement guidelines based on age group when it comes to a responsible approach to heading training for children and youths, rather than categorically banning it. While headers are currently prohibited in training for children under twelve in England, German football has adopted a different approach to the situation. “Banning them in training isn’t the right step as heading happens in competitive football and during kickabouts with friends. Young footballers might end up using the wrong technique, which, in the worst-case scenario, could result in more harm. We believe to have found a pertinent solution,” said Ronny Zimmermann, president of the Baden FA and DFB presidential board member for youth football guidelines and talent development.
“Be more cautious regarding the effects of heading”
At the heart of the recommendations published for the approximately 23,500 clubs governed by the DFB are the newly defined game formats with a focus on ground passes, age-appropriate methods for learning how to head the ball, and awareness training for coaches and players. “The common attitude of just playing on when there is a buzzing in your head is quite simply wrong. This trivialisation needs to stop,” said Zimmermann.
Prof. Dr. Dr. Claus Reinsberger, professor for sports medicine at Paderborn University, neurologist, and a member of the DFB medical committee in charge of the specialist topic ‘Head injuries in football’ explained: “We want to be more cautious regarding the effects of heading in youth football, something new studies give us reason to do. Our focus is on long-term impact rather than merely banning it. The fact that new game formats on small pitches will reduce the number of headers in children’s and youth football from 2024/25 is something we very much welcome from a medical perspective. It’s about pairing scientific evidence with sports training knowledge. In other words, medicine and the coaches in this country are in the same boat.”
“The new game formats will improve the technical skills of our youth players in German football,” said Markus Hirte, head of talent development at the DFB since 2016. “An additional and indeed a welcome side effect is that children and youths will head the ball less often. Heading technique can be controlled and honed in an age-appropriate manner in training. It’s about taking a sensible approach.”
All about having the right technique
A key for protecting the brain is connecting with the ball with your forehead and making sure you tense your neck muscles. Studies have shown that strengthening the neck muscles through isometric exercises, for example, leads to a reduction in the force on the brain. Heading exercises should also be built up slowly and be left off the training schedule during adverse conditions (e.g. in cold and wet weather). Heading training with younger age groups should only be done with the ball being thrown. The number of repetitions should also be reduced when the ball travels longer distances. “Enough recovery time is also critical between heading exercises,” said Dr. Reinsberger. All recommendations for age-appropriate heading training were confirmed by the DFB youth Bundestag assembly and will now be communicated across the board by the DFB and its regional associations.
All 21 regional associations have been taking part in the pilot project for new game formats since 2019. From the 2024/25 season, only these game formats will be incorporated within the youth regulations for the U7s to U11s age groups, meaning that club football at these age levels will be conducted in accordance with the new game formats by the time Germany hosts the European Championship. Current figures suggest that the changes will affect more than 35,000 teams, more than 10,000 clubs and around half a million children across the country. Thanks to the children’s coaching certificate introduced in 2021, the many coaches active in these age groups in particular, who often don’t hold a valid coaching licence, will be kept informed about this important topic.
“No longer trivialising the possible impact on the head and brain”
Concerns around the issue were raised in 2019 following a study published by The University of Glasgow, according to which footballers are three times more likely to die as a result of dementia. The researchers looked at the cause of death for 7,700 Scottish former professional footballers and compared it with the general population. The DFB commission considers the offensive interpretation often taken from the results of the study somewhat disputable. “The footballers researched played a long time ago and lived longer than those they were compared with,” said Prof. Dr. Reinsberger. Both factors were not considered in the public interpretation of the results, while other potential reasons behind the disease were also not brought into question. Because of this and other shortcomings in the Scottish study, a causal link is not automatically established and so substantial additional research must be conducted.
In January 2021, the DFB presidential board agreed that organised football in Germany would follow UEFA’s recommendations relating to heading in youth football. “The most important goal in this and other regulations in German football is long-term awareness, so that everyone involved no longer trivialises the possible impact on the head and brain,” said Prof. Dr. Tim Meyer, chairman of the DFB medical committee.
