- An inquest has been ordered into the death of England's 1966 World Cup winner Nobby Stiles, who died with a traumatic brain injury.
- The coroner ruled an inquest was necessary after a brain expert confirmed Stiles's death was contributed to by high-stage chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), associated with head traumas from repeatedly heading a football.
- Stiles's son, John, who leads the Football Families for Justice group, has previously stated that football 'killed' his father, and the family has campaigned for greater support for ex-players.
- The ruling follows a similar inquest into the death of Gordon McQueen, where heading the ball was deemed 'likely' to have contributed to his brain injury, with his daughter noting the 1966 World Cup team has been 'pretty much wiped out' by neurodegenerative disease.
- Dozens of former footballers are suing football authorities for alleged negligence, while the FA, despite co-funding a study linking football to neurodegenerative disease, maintains a scientific link between heading and permanent brain damage has not been established, though it is phasing out heading in youth football.
IN FULL
