Across American football, rugby, football and other high-level sports, World Players’ members are advancing brain health research, prevention and long-term support, reinforcing the responsibility to protect players throughout and beyond their careers.
Brain injuries and repeated head impacts are among the most complex health and safety challenges facing high-level sport. While important scientific questions remain, player associations are working across research, education, prevention, advocacy and long-term care to ensure that uncertainty does not become a reason for inaction.
Recent initiatives by World Players’ members also demonstrate the different roles that player associations can play. Some unions lead or fund scientific research, while others help connect researchers with players and support their participation in studies, provide screening and support, or use the collective voice of players to press governing bodies for safer rules and stronger protections.
In England, the Rugby Players’ Association works in partnership with Dementia UK to provide the RPA Admiral Nurse Clinics, offering free and confidential specialist support on dementia and brain health. Former professional and elite players affected by dementia, concerned about their memory or seeking information about brain health can access advice, while their families and carers can receive practical guidance and emotional support. Appointments are available by phone or video call.
In American football, the NFL Players Association supports research into concussion, repetitive head impacts, cognitive health and potential diagnostic and treatment pathways. This includes the ongoing Football Players Health Study at Harvard University, which is funded by the NFLPA but conducted independently, and research carried out between 2024 and 2026 examining the microbiome–gut–brain axis and its potential role in preventing persistent symptoms following traumatic brain injury.
In Australian football, the AFL Players’ Association continues to make concussion a priority within its research and player services. Its 2026 Insights and Impact Report found that 82% of AFL players have high levels of concern about the long-term effects of concussion, while only 50% of AFLW clubs always meet the collective bargaining agreement standard of having a doctor present at contact training sessions. The AFLPA and AFL also maintain a commitment to ongoing concussion research aimed at improving prevention, detection, management and outcomes for current and former players.
FIFPRO is contributing new evidence through the Drake Football Study, a ten-year project following 170 professional footballers during and after their playing careers. Research involving 68 women players found that those who reported three concussions performed significantly worse in attention tasks than those reporting two or fewer, although researchers stressed that further evidence is needed. FIFPRO is also working with Amsterdam University Medical Centers to use instrumented mouthguards to measure the frequency and force of head impacts in professional football.
International Rugby Players joined World Rugby and national unions to launch the global Brain Health Initiative in 2021, providing current and former players with information on long-term brain health and modifiable risk factors for dementia. By 2025, Brain Health Services had been established in Wales, Ireland and Australia, with further expansion planned as part of an updated player welfare plan developed in consultation with International Rugby Players.
Professional Footballers Australia has combined education, screening, partnerships and player support. Its 2025 Player Development Program report recorded concussion education for first-year A-Leagues players, while its Past Players Program has provided concussion assessments. The union also works with the Australian Sports Brain Bank, HeadingPro and the Concussion Legacy Foundation Australia, and in 2026 produced a documentary featuring former Socceroos captain Paul Wade to raise awareness of repeated head impacts and long-term brain health.
Protecting brain health requires sustained independent research to guide the evolution of sport towards safer training practices, equipment and rules, alongside access to care throughout and beyond a player’s career. Player unions are essential to ensuring that players’ experiences inform the evidence and translate into effective protections and meaningful long-term support.
Related news
