A groundbreaking study involving former Norwich City players has made a major breakthrough in understanding the link between football and dementia.
The study, carried out at the University of East Anglia has found that professional footballers are more likely to develop worse brain health after the age of 65 than those who did not play the game.
The study has been monitoring former pros for signs of brain health decline through a series of short tests.
Among those to sign up to take part are former Canaries Iwan Roberts and Jeremy Goss, who have both previously spoken openly about their fears.
The study has been running for more than two years and now its first conclusions are being shared.
It comes following a number of high-profile cases of former players suffering with dementia in later life - which has been linked with the repetitive heading of footballs.
Michael Grey, from the UEA's school of health sciences, who led the trial, said: "We know that heading the ball has been associated with an increased risk of dementia among professional football players.
"The problem has been emphasised with a number of high-profile former players coming forward with diagnoses of dementia.
"But until now, little has been known about when players start to show signs of brain health decline."
The study has used cutting-edge technology to test for early signs of cognitive dysfunction in former players aged 50 and over.
It is then comparing results with people in similar age groups who have never played football professionally.
Dr Grey added: "What we are seeing is that in the 40-50 age group, the footballers are performing a bit better.
"We know that regular exercise is really good for brain health and our research confirms professional footballers have improved brain health in their 40s compared to non-footballers.
"But when they get to 65 - that's when things are starting to go wrong.
"The over-65s performed worse when assessed for things like reaction time, executive function and spatial navigation.
"These are early warning sights for deteriorating brain health.
"This research highlights the need to investigate ways we can limit the damage to the brain as people play sport and to monitor brain health as we get older."
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