Objective

In a retrospective cohort, we evaluated whether age beginning tackle football (ABTF) and more total years of playing football (TYPF) were associated with worse later-in-life neuropsychological change among older retired National Football League (NFL) players.

Method

Participants were 19 older NFL retirees aged 54–79, including 12 who returned for follow-up evaluation 15–51 months later. Mixed-linear models evaluated the association between ABTF/TYFP and baseline neuropsychological composite scores (executive functioning/attention/speed, language, memory), and neuropsychological composites over time.

Results

ABTF and TYPF were not significantly associated with neuropsychological composites at baseline or over time (all p’s > .05). There were no significant differences in neuropsychological performance between those ABTF <12 and ≥ 12 years old (all p’s ≥ .475) or between those with TYPF <19 or ≥ 19 years played (median split; all p’s ≥ .208).

Conclusions

Preliminary findings suggest that ABTF and TYPF does not worsen neurocognitive decline later-in-life among older NFL retirees.

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2022
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