Soccer heading and cognitive performance in professional soccer players: One‐year longitudinal data

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundSoccer is the most popular sport worldwide and the only sport in which participants purposely hit the ball with their head. Although researchers have focused on the effects of concussions in contact sports, the role of sub‐concussive impacts (e.g. heading), has gained attention. The aim of this ongoing longitudinal study is to investigate the effects of soccer heading on cognitive functioning in active soccer players.MethodMale professional soccer players (n=22), from two teams playing in the Brazilian championship, and non‐athletes (n=37), matched by age and education, were submitted to computerized (E‐Prime software) and conventional (NEUPSILIN battery) cognitive assessment. All subjects were tested on two occasions – T0 and T1 – separated by a one‐year interval.ResultIn T0, players performed better than controls on three variables of computerized testing – reaction time and accuracy in executive functioning tests – and on two variables of NEUPSILIN battery – scores in memory and arithmetic abilities tests. In T1, soccer players outperformed controls on three variables of the computerized testing – reaction time in general motor coordination test and accuracy in executive functioning tests – and on one variable of the NEUPSILIN battery – score in arithmetic abilities test. Intragroup analyses revealed that while controls improved their performance on three variables from T0 to T1 – reaction time in attention test, accuracy in executive functioning test and score in memory test – no improvement was observed among soccer players. However, a comparison involving variation in performance between T0 and T1 showed no significant differences between groups. Among soccer players, no significant correlations were found between self‐reported number of headings per game and cognitive performance in T0 and T1, controlling for concussion history.ConclusionThere was no evidence of cognitive impairment in soccer players, compared to non‐athletes, in T0 and T1. Soccer players even outperformed controls on some tests. The change in cognitive performance from T0 to T1 was similar between groups. Moreover, estimate of exposure to heading did not correlate with performance of soccer players in tests. Further longitudinal investigations are needed to clarify the relationship between soccer heading and cognition.