Soccer Organizations Sued Over Concussions - As Predicted

WASHINGTON - Aug. 28, 2014 - PRLog -- As predicted by public interest law professor John Banzhaf, the class action law suit by former football players against the NFL for concussion-related injuries has spread far beyond the world of football, as a new class action law suit was filed today against many major soccer organizations.  Banzhaf wrote in November of 2013:

"As sports fans settle into a cornucopia of food and football this Thanksgiving, there are at least three major sets of class action law suits, based upon concussions received by players of both genders in several different sports - with billions of dollars, thousands of young lives, and perhaps even the future or nature of several sports at stake."

The new law suit was filed against FIFA, the sport's international governing body, as well as American soccer organizations, including U.S. Soccer and the American Youth Soccer Organization.

At this point it doesn't yet seek damages, but rather is aimed at changing the sports' rules, such as limiting headers for children, and altering FIFA's substitution protocols.

The law suit charges that "There is an epidemic of concussion injuries in soccer at all levels around the world, including in the United States, from youth to professionals, from elite players to children playing for the first time, women and men, girls and boys. . . .  FIFA presides over this epidemic and is one of its primary causes."

In December, Banzhaf reported that "Law suits by current and former athletes over medical problems allegedly caused by concussions during games or training continue to proliferate - and now involve several different sports and both male and female athletes. . . "

"Two new suits filed last week join at least eight previously filed suits against the National Collegiate Athletic Association [NCAA] by former college football, hockey, and soccer players, at least one of whom is female, indicating that the sweep of the growing number of concussion law suits is not necessarily limited to only one sport or only one gender."

"One suit seeks to represent all current and former students who participated in contact sports.  Also, in additional to the NFL and NCAA concussion suits, a class action has been filed against the NHL by some 200 former players."

These many law suits  could actually affect the sports themselves.  "Some of our favorite games will probably look different in the near future," predicts Bloomberg News, and Huffington Post predicted that "Health Care Issues Could Mean Collapse of NCAA as We Know It."

Also, in FRONTLINE's report on the problem ["League of Denial"], an NFL representative warns: "If only ten percent of mothers might be convinced that their sons should not play football, that is the end of football."   What happens to soccer from this new suit remains to be seen, says Banzhaf.

JOHN F. BANZHAF III, B.S.E.E., J.D., Sc.D.
Professor of Public Interest Law
George Washington University Law School,
FAMRI Dr. William Cahan Distinguished Professor,
Fellow, World Technology Network,
Founder, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH)
2000 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20052, USA
(202) 994-7229 // (703) 527-8418
http://banzhaf.net/ @profbanzhaf