US Soccer Recommends Ban on Heading the Ball for Children Aged 10 and Under

Heading the ball will no longer be allowed for a large number of players aged 10 and under in the United States following the upcoming implementation of a U.S. Soccer Federation policy aimed at reducing head injuries in the sport.

Players aged 11, 12 and 13 will also be restricted in the number of headers allowed per week in practice following the outcome of a lawsuit representing youth players, per Darren Rovell of ESPN FC.

Rovell reported the U.S. Soccer Federation is implementing the policy for national teams and its developmental academy while urging "the changes be adopted by all of its members."

Per Yahoo Finance, the lead attorney in the lawsuit, Hagens Berman's Steve Berman, described the decision as a "tremendous victory that will affect millions of young soccer players across the country."

As a result of the settlement, a standard protocol will also now have to be followed when a player is found to have sustained a concussion.

MLS analyst Danny Page has backed the move to introduce more stringent safety measures:

"

Strange to see that there is any debate banning kids from heading the ball. Good on @ussoccer.

— Danny Page (@DannyPage) November 10, 2015"

U.S. Soccer also announced changes will be made to substitution rules in relation to concussion.

They will echo similar changes made recently by World Rugby, which allows for temporary substitutions to be made for players suspected of being concussed in order for a head-injury assessment to take place.

According to Jack de Menezes in the Independent, the original lawsuit against U.S. Soccer and FIFA called for action to be taken after almost 50,000 concussions were recorded among high school soccer players in 2010, a higher total than baseball, basketball, softball and wrestling combined.

The decision comes as the NCAA and NFL remain embroiled in controversy surrounding increased and worrying head injuries in American football.

Per Rovell, Hagens Berman has also filed a lawsuit against the NCAA in the hope of forcing stricter rules on head injuries to be enforced.