NFL Hall of Famer Brett Favre has issued a stark warning that children under age 14 should be banned from playing tackle football due to the dangers of sustaining head injuries.
The Super Bowl-winning quarterback is calling on parents to heed the advice of medical professionals about chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.
“Having kids play before high school is just not worth the risk,” Mr Favre warned parents in a statement.
“CTE is a terrible disease, and we need to do everything we can to prevent it for the next generation of football players.”
The risk of developing the degenerative brain disease from repeat concussions in sports such as football and boxing has been well publicised in recent years.
Mr Favre, 51, teamed up with the Concussion Legacy Foundation to highlight the issue, which is most prevalent among players who suffer concussions from an early age.
“I could be fighting depression, struggling to keep my thoughts straight. I could become violent, even towards my own children,” he says.
“When I’m your age, what will matter to me is not my youth football career but that, like you, I’m a great parent and that I can provide for my family.”
A 2017 neuropathology study into the brains of deceased NFL players found 110 out of 111 showed signs of CTE.
Mr Favre played 321 consecutive NFL games between 1992 and 2010, most famously for the Green Bay Packers.
He won Superbowl XXXI with the Packers in 1997 before going on to play for the New York Jets and Minnesota Vikings.
