This archive report was first published on 22 October 2019.
Former England international Chris Sutton has spoken out against the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) for its lack of action on the link between football and dementia.
A study released on Monday found that former footballers are approximately three-and-a-half times more likely to die from neurodegenerative diseases than the general population.
The study, commissioned by England's Football Association and the PFA, assessed the medical records of 7,676 men who played professional football in Scotland between 1900 and 1976.
Outgoing PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor has been criticized for his handling of the issue, particularly by the family of former West Bromwich Albion striker Jeff Astle, who died in 2002 from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) linked to repeatedly heading heavy leather footballs.
"The confirmation that there is a link between football and dementia brings me no satisfaction. It makes me angry," Sutton said in a column in the Daily Mail newspaper.
"Angry for people like my dad, Mike, and other former footballers who are dying in the most horrible and humiliating way. Angry for the future generations who will suffer, too, because this study was rolled out 15 years too late."
"The PFA, led by Gordon Taylor, had a duty of care to their members," Sutton said. "They let them down." Jeff Astle's daughter, Dawn, who has been campaigning since her father's death for football to research into the area, said she was "staggered" to learn of the findings.
