Fifa’s latest governing body examines links to concussion in sports group | concussion in sports

Fifa is reviewing its relationship with the global sports concussion organization it helps fund amid plagiarism allegations against its former co-chair, influential neuroscientist Dr. Paul McCrory.

A week after McCrory tendered his resignation from the Concussion in Sport Group, football’s governing body, World Rugby, has joined to put distance between itself and the protocols the Australian academic helped shape across a variety of sports, including the NFL, the Football Association and the AFL.

“Fifa has learned with great concern the resignation of Professor McCrory from the Concussion in Sport Group (CISG),” Fifa said in a statement to the Guardian. “Given the seriousness of the situation, Fifa is currently analyzing the work of the Concussion in Sport Group (CISG) as a whole to decide how best to proceed.

“In general, Fifa fully supports the tools and information that have emerged from the CISG consensus statements and will continue to ensure that these tools are freely available to all who wish to use them.”

McCrory, a controversial figure who has previously called concussions “exaggerated” among NFL players, was the lead author of four of the last five consensus statements on concussion in sport, from which Fifa and countless other organizations draw their concussion guidelines and assessment protocols. This includes the standardized SCAT5 tool used by physicians to assess head injuries in athletes aged 13 and older.

But the CISG was embroiled in controversy this month after the British Journal of Sports Medicine retracted a 2005 editorial by McCrory, the publication’s editor at the time, alleging an “unlawful and unjustifiable infringement of the copyright” of the work led by Professor Steve Haake.

McCrory said the “error” occurred because an unfinished and unreferenced draft was accidentally uploaded. Since then, an analysis of 10 pieces suggests he may have copied other works without proper attribution. It leaves the CISG and its benefactors, including Fifa, World Rugby and the International Olympic Committee, along with the International Equestrian Federation, the FIA ​​and the International Ice Hockey Federation, on shaky ground.

Even before the McCrory allegations, it was criticized for alleged conflicts of interest, while its recent consensus statement, of which McCrory was lead author, “revealed a cause-and-effect relationship” between chronic traumatic encephalopathy and repeated concussion or sub-concussive effects. Last year, a group of academics, researchers, clinicians and caregivers argued that the trial had consistently downplayed the risks.

Since the plagiarism allegations surfaced, World Rugby have also distanced themselves from McCrory, emphasizing his independence and his “individualised” case-by-case approach to return-to-game timeframes. On Monday she “noted with concern” McCrory’s resignation.

“World Rugby can confirm that Professor McCrory has not been involved in any concussion projects or research undertaken by World Rugby and he has not been part of any concussion working group that shapes policy for the sport in this important area,” it said in a statement.

“Rugby’s Graded Return-to-Play (GRTP) protocols are backed by scientific research and guided by our independent Concussion Working Group. Our GRTP is not based on the opinions of any particular group or individual.

“Given the seriousness of the allegations, World Rugby, under the leadership of its independent Concussion Working Group, is working with other founding sponsor sports to investigate and identify any necessary governance actions needed to make the future of the Concussion-in-Sport conference better to support.”

It is understood World Rugby may seek a more active role in CISG’s operations in exchange for its continued support. Fifa, for its part, recently took some long-overdue steps to reduce the risk of head injuries in football.

New protocols approved by the Ifab in late 2020 allow one or two permanent substitutes to be brought into a game, in addition to regular substitutes, if doctors think a player may have a concussion.

It trialled a one-substitution protocol at the Club World Cup in Qatar, while the Premier League, FA Cup and Women’s Super League have introduced a two-substitution policy, but so far many of Fifa’s 211 member associations have opposed it decided.

At this year’s World Cup, concussion spotters will be introduced to spot possible brain injuries from the stands.