At SDN we believe that the  recent incident in the Mallorca-Barcelona match, where play continued despite a clear traumatic head injury and a player lying on the pitch, is deeply disturbing.

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Not only was the referee’s failure to stop play a critical mistake, but furthermore constitutes negligent dereliction of duty and it raises questions about how we can better protect players on the pitch.

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These very issues were extensively discussed at this year’s SDN Head Injuries in Football Conference in Zurich. Urgent topics included the need for mandatory education at all levels of the game, referees, coaches and players from both teams.

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Objective decision-making, and the presence of independent Unaffiliated Neurotrauma Consultants (UNCs), as already established in the NFL, to ensure that such incidents are recognized and managed immediately and consistently are critical. We will soon publish practical, consensus-based recommendations to better safeguard players’ brain health. This incident is a stark reminder: protecting brain health must always come before the scoreboard.

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"You highlight an important and relevant challenge in modern football. Who do we need in all the different disciplines to have optimal concussion protocols and stick to them? Just medical staff, unbiased third parties, referees? In this case, a lack of knowledge for whoever is in charge can lead to serious harm to players, s o let's use this as a lesson and start with better education and another critical look at the rule book of IFAB. I recently went to a similar situation, where a player had a highly suspicious trauma on the field, but I was not allowed in the field (and not able to examine the player), which lead to a postponed diagnosis of concussion, another 10 minutes of play while concussed and adverse reactions of fellow players on the field (lifting the injured player up, without proper assesment of the cervical spine for example). Maybe this event can help gaining momentum for changes and optimal player care after as well as during every match." – First Division European Team Doctor‍

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Players must always come first.

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