Are parents reconsidering letting kids play footy over CTE risks?

Are parents reconsidering letting kids play footy due to CTE risks? Thu 2 Jul 2026 at 2:24pm Earlier this week, ABC Investigations revealed 33 Australian rules football players had been diagnosed with a degenerative brain disease after their deaths. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in professional players of contact sport has been a growing concern in the past few years. But the latest CTE findings drove home the confronting reality that even amateur and semi-professional players players could be affected. CTE, which is caused by repeated hits to the head, is associated with a host of symptoms including depression, memory loss and rage, and can only be diagnosed after death. We wanted to know if the increased awareness of risks of CTE was impacting parents' decisions about what sport they allowed their children to play. Here's what some of our readers told us. A neurologist who says 'no' "I'm an adult neurologist and I see several patients with suspected CTE. "Some are quite young and it's awful to have to tell them and their families that's what I suspect they have. "My spouse and I have never allowed our kids to play contact sports for this reason." — Yi Zhong, aged 40s, Adelaide 'Only one header a season' "We encouraged our two boys to play soccer rather than AFL in Albany, where both sports are popular, because of the risks of CTE. "We tell our children they're allowed one header a season because of CTE, partly tongue in cheek. "But I have been surprised that there is very little knowledge about Football Australia's recommendations, including the use of modified balls for the introduction of header training." — Greg, aged 50s, Albany 'Avoiding rugby and AFL' "I have three children and when choosing the sports my children play I am actively avoiding rugby and AFL. "As a parent, I would never want to take something away from my children that they love, so I am not even letting them try those sports. "I used to go out with an AFL player in my teens-20s and I have seen first hand the number of concussions he experienced. "I would never let my children be in a position where they'd choose a love of sports over their health." — Jessica, aged 40s, Sydney 'Wear headgear' "Both our kids play AFL. "We considered the risks and make them wear headgear every game. "We fight and argue with them every week but we remind them they will thank us when they are older." — Tegan, aged 40s, ACT Coach wants helmets to be like seatbelts "I am a coach of a U9s footy team and I make it mandatory for my son to wear a helmet when playing and training. "As a coach I find it difficult to access information from the AFL, so I need to do my best with what I have. "I have spoken to all my players and parents about the risk of concussion and that I personally recommend a helmet when playing. "I find the lack of interest very disappointing from the AFL and codes in general about the risks. "I would love to see helmets compulsory for U9s and then next year U10s and 2028 U11s and so on. "These kids will grow up wearing a helmet and not know any difference, like wearing a seatbelts you just do it." — Simon, aged 40s, Melbourne 'Injuries come from everywhere' "I am of the opinion sport of any type is paramount for a child's development. "If I were to have kids I would highly encourage their engagement in sports, especially team sports. "However, I do believe that there are steps that leagues can take to improve head protection. "In regards to AFL, potentially making wearing a helmet mandatory could be a consideration. "Injury is an unavoidable consequence of life, so while I understand the concerns I think our measures to protect children can be detrimental. "Injuries come from everywhere and I think framing it as a lifelong outcome from playing contact sport is potentially harmful. "In an age where screens are dominating kids' time we should encourage sports, particularly team sports, whichever form they come in. "I recognise potential concerns of contact sports but I am of the belief that contact is not inherently bad. "Contact sports teach kids a lot about their limitations, strengths and how to protect themselves. "From AFL I've only had one serious injury, I tore a tendon in my foot. "Whereas I slipped a disc playing tennis, tore my quad playing soccer, concussed from riding a bike and many other minor injuries from just growing up." — Joel, aged 20s, Melbourne via Reddit 'I feel pretty safe about allowing him to play' "I have considered the risk of CTE when thinking about sports for my son, but ultimately, my family's love of AFL and my insight into current concussion/head injury protocols and how much they've improved means I feel pretty safe allowing him to play footy. "My husband and I did consider a helmet but at the moment it's pretty bruise free in his under-8s games. "I didn't play contact sports after age 12 but have suffered severe osteoarthritis due to netball injuries and can't walk any more without pain — so there are risks involved in all sports. "I think with increased awareness of CTE comes increased consideration of the risks of contact sport. I don't think it's something my parents or grandparents would've considered in generations past. "If I didn't have a background in sports training maybe I'd be more reluctant but I feel pretty confident in my ability to spot head trauma and I'll be very conservative in managing any return to sport if my son does cop a head knock or concussion. "There are definitely parents I've spoken to who disagree with me and won't allow their kids to play footy as a result of fears about CTE. "He's one of only four kids in his year level at school that play footy, most families have chosen basketball or soccer, and when I have asked his mates' parents if they're keen to try footy I get a pretty quick 'no'. "However, many parents allow their children to do things I consider far more risky than playing AFL, such as allowing device use and unsupervised internet access. "The risks of harm involved in a game like Roblox, for me, far surpass any risks I'm worried about on the footy field." — Kate, aged 30s, Melbourne via Reddit Encouraged by caution around head knocks "My decisions with regards to my kids playing sport haven't been that difficult as of yet. "My daughter who is seven plays soccer and the risks are minimal, both due to the nature of the sport but also the age bracket she's in. "I suffered multiple head knocks as a teenager and eventually stopped playing football in my early 20s due to head knocks. "This was much before the current caution was put in place around head knocks. "I shouldn't have been let go continue to play on multiple occasions. "This kind of thing isn't allowed anymore and local clubs should be praised for it. "I have two other younger kids, if they want to play football I am not going to put a brick wall in front of them. "The main reasoning behind my acceptance of my kids playing boils down to the benefits of teams sports outweighing the risks. "The risks exist in any sport whether it's riding a bike or heading a ball in soccer. "I can also see that the culture around head knocks is changing for the better. "All that being said, if my kids were to suffer a serious head knock I would be seeking medical attention for them to return to sport and potentially make a hard decision of removing them from the sport for their own safety." — ABC reader via Reddit. Experts caution on helmets in sportsFormer rugby-player dad worried about son "I played rugby union in Sydney as a kid. "I played well, I played hard, I played reps, I had trophies. Loved it. "Had several bouts of amnesia lasting hours following head knocks. Never diagnosed. "Now my son plays AFL. "Recently my son (15) asked if he could play in the open age team where he would have been smashed by grown men … if I had allowed it … which I did not. "Yes the team spirit and mateship might be good for my son, but possible CTE from repeated impacts is not. "Furthermore, the boys are exposed to a toxic masculine culture where those who "go hard" (get more impacts) are seen as heroes. "After reading about CTE and reflecting on my own experience of playing rugby union as a teenager, I am concerned." — George, aged 60s, south-east NSW Some responses have been edited for clarity and brevity.