Youth football accounts for the largest share of sports‑related traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) in children and young adults, nearly one in every five TBIs, according to a preliminary study from researchers at the American Academy of Neurology.

For the study, researchers reviewed a health records database to identify 72,025 children and young adults aged 25 or younger who had experienced their first sports‑ or recreation‑related TBI. Youth sports and activities included in the study, in addition to football, were soccer, basketball, cycling, skiing, snowboarding, running, baseball, hiking, roller skating, skateboarding, wrestling, cheerleading, ice hockey, lacrosse, field hockey, and volleyball. The average age at injury was 14 years, and 32 percent of cases occurred in girls.

Among the findings:

  • Football accounted for 19 percent of all activity‑related TBIs, with soccer being the second highest, accounting for 11 percent of TBIs, basketball accounting for 10 percent, and cycling accounting for 7 percent.
  • Repeat TBIs were common, occurring in 37 percent of football injuries compared to 32 percent across all sports.
  • After adjusting for age and sex, researchers found among those who played football, those with TBI had a 23 percent higher risk of chronic headaches compared to those without TBI, as well as a 5 percent higher risk of visual impairment, a 5 percent higher risk of anxiety, a 3 percent higher risk of depression and a 1 percent higher risk of substance use disorders. Visual impairment included double vision, decreased visual acuity, and, in rare cases, complete blindness.
  • When looking at timing, researchers found that TBIs at younger ages were associated with developmental and mood disorders, while TBIs at older ages were associated with substance use disorders.

A limitation of the study is that clinical data were used, making it difficult to determine the cause of a TBI, since most TBIs are recorded without a cause. This may have influenced how researchers attributed TBIs to specific activities.

“Our findings highlight youth football as a critical public health priority, suggesting that brain injuries sustained during key stages of development may reshape health later,” said study author Steven Wolf, MD, of Boston Children’s Health Physicians in Hawthorne, New York, and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.  “Prioritizing safety standards like delaying tackle football participation and finding ways to limit repeat injuries could help better protect developing brains.”

The findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 78th Annual Meeting in Chicago from April 18-22, 2026.

Image courtesy GMA