A scientist who "linked heading a football to instant brain damage has appealed for wealthy supporters to fund more research," according to Graeme Donohoe of the Scotland DAILY RECORD. Dr. Magdalena Ietswaart "urged rich football club owners and shareholders" such as Chelsea's Roman Abramovich, Scottish Premiership side Rangers and League Championship club Newcastle United's Mike Ashley and former Tottenham Chair Alan Sugar to fund her research project to "protect players in future." Ietswaart is part of a Stirling University team that "detected direct changes in the brain from a footballer heading a ball 20 times." She said, "We're plugging away but we need generous funding. ... The only way to get answers is through investing in research, which is expensive." The research team's website, Stirling Brains, features a crowdfunding page for donations. Research found that "even light, 21st-century footballs impair brain function." Players headed the ball 20 times in experiments and results revealed "memory performance was reduced" by between 41% and 67% in the 24 hours after the tests (DAILY RECORD, 2/12).
