The son of Manchester United and England legend Nobby Stiles has expressed outrage after the Football Association (FA) reportedly denied a link between heading a football and brain injuries in a High Court defense.
John Stiles, founder of the campaign group Football Families for Justice, has been pushing the FA to provide financial support to families of former players who suffered dementia and neurodegenerative diseases. His father, Nobby Stiles, died in 2020 at age 78 after battling advanced dementia, which his family believes was caused by repeated heading of the ball.
A leaked 41-page legal document from the FA allegedly argues that the governing body should not owe a general duty of care to footballers. The FA has neither confirmed nor denied the document's contents, stating that the link between heading and long-term brain health is still under scientific investigation.
"With the evidence from Dad's brain and worldwide research, it must be faced up to. We've fought for five years to get help," John Stiles said. He added bluntly, "I know heading the ball killed my dad."
Nobby Stiles' post-mortem revealed advanced Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease from repeated head impacts. Several coroners have ruled that football careers contributed to the deaths of former players, including Everton's Alan Jarvis and West Brom's Jeff Astle.
The FA responded: "While the link between heading and long-term brain health remains the subject of ongoing scientific research, we have been at the forefront of improving player safety. We introduced comprehensive heading guidelines and continue to review concussion protocols."
But for John Stiles, the FA's stance is a betrayal. "I just don't think football wants to take hold of this," he said.