ByREUTERS

JULY 12, 2026 07:33

Former British professional soccer athletes exhibited structural brain variations along with elevated levels of anxiety and depression, yet displayed no evidence of reduced thinking abilities in research aimed at determining whether repeated head contacts such as ball heading increase dementia likelihood.

Imperial College London investigators conducted the research with 142 ex-players ranging from 30 to 60 years old and matched them against 56 healthy peers of similar age who had avoided contact sports, military duty, or prior concussions.

Beyond surveys and assessments for mental function, the team reviewed structural MRI images from 124 qualifying athletes and 40 controls to evaluate variations in grey matter volume across brain regions.

Presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Sunday, the work forms part of broader scientific efforts to view repeated head impacts as a changeable dementia risk element in older age, much like managing blood pressure or cholesterol levels.

The project establishes the foundation for ongoing monitoring of these athletes at two-year intervals.

"Scientists are adopting a wider perspective on brain wellness and dementia factors," noted lead researcher Thomas Parker, a neurologist consultant at Imperial College London.

Comparable results in memory and cognition evaluations

Following adjustments for age and schooling, the retired players performed in line with expectations on memory and reasoning tasks, revealing no notable gaps versus the control participants.

Participants reported substantially greater mental health challenges, including 31 percent reaching clinical depression thresholds versus 9 percent in controls, and 42 percent indicating clinical anxiety versus 25 percent.

Brain imaging revealed that the former players collectively had reduced tissue volume in zones managing memory and emotions relative to controls.

However, just 2 percent of the athletes individually exhibited marked tissue loss suggestive of ongoing neurodegeneration.

The findings remain unpeer-reviewed, with plans to submit expanded analyses and a bigger dataset later this year.

Absence of direct Alzheimer's connection

No direct tie to Alzheimer's disease emerged, the progressive condition that erodes memory and ranks as the leading dementia cause.

Prior sports-related brain injury studies have often depended on autopsy data and historical records to examine chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a condition tied to repeated head trauma like heading or concussions and diagnosable only posthumously.

This mid-life athlete tracking helps map neurological shifts well before typical dementia onset ages.

Outcomes align with the group's earlier 2025 peer-reviewed rugby study of 200 retirees, which noted parallel grey matter reductions and higher anxiety yet preserved cognitive function.

Investigators stressed that results cannot forecast personal dementia chances.

"We remain early in adapting these observations for individual risk assessment," Parker added.