The Bernstein Brief: Heady Move By Illinois Youth Soccer
By Dan Bernstein--
CBSChicago.com senior columnist
(CBS) The governing body in charge of kids' soccer in Illinois said they were waiting for guidance from national officials before acting but finally had to do something on its own.
On Wednesday, it banned heading for players 10 and under.
Per the website, "A purposeful header by a player in an age bracket for players aged ten and under shall be considered an indirect free kick awarded to the opponent."
This had been discussed by US Soccer for some time now, part of the resolution of a class-action lawsuit filed in California in August 2014 that asked for sweeping rules changes regarding safety guidelines instead of monetary damages. But even though the national federation made the recommendation, it apparently lacked enough enforcement power.
According to a story in the Chicago Tribune, a faction of coaches and administrators is grumbling about the change, with one coach telling the paper, "At the league meetings I've seen, a lot of people are upset about it."
Well, tough.
As more evidence becomes available about the dangers of multiple sub-concussive impacts to a child's developing brain, I would expect not only for the ban to be codified elsewhere but to apply to even older players.
There's just no good reason to ask a child to smash his or her head into something.
Dan Bernstein is a co-host of 670 The Score's "Boers and Bernstein Show" in afternoon drive. You can follow him on Twitter @dan_bernstein and read more of his columns here.
