Recommendations for cardiac screening and emergency action planning in youth football: a FIFA consensus statement
Sudden cardiac death is the leading medical cause of death among football players. Determining the optimal cardiac screening, the use of carefully selected medical assessments to detect underlying cardiovascular conditions associated with sudden cardiac arrest/death, is a desired objective of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) for football players of all ages. To date, cardiac screening recommendations in football have primarily focused on adult competitive players. Acknowledging its responsibility for player health worldwide, FIFA convened an international working group of cardiology and sports medicine experts to develop cardiac screening recommendations for youth football players. This group performed structured literature reviews and ultimately congregated in January of 2024, when recommendations were presented, scrutinised and judged using a systematic process. The final FIFA recommendations for youth cardiac screening include personal medical history, family medical history, focused physical examination and resting 12-lead electrocardiography. This document provides detailed rationale and clinical recommendations for youth cardiac screening and emphasises the importance of emergency action planning.
Authors
- Antonio Pelliccia (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4174-3401)
- Margot Putukian (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1478-8068)
- Guido E. Pieles (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1203-688X)
- M. Cecilia Gonzalez Corcia (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4289-049X)
- Gary S. Mak
- Cléa Simone Sabino de Souza Colombo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3719-3603)
- Prince Pambo
- Benjamin D. Levine (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9064-7251)
- Christian Schmied (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5701-0697)
- Katharina Grimm (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8252-9287)
- André La Gerche (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3906-3784)
- Andreas Serner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4308-901X)
- Sabiha Gati (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0199-5092)
- Mats Börjesson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8786-0438)
- Jonathan A. Drezner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3519-9120)
- Mathew G Wilson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6317-0168)
- Yasser Abdelrahman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8429-9788)
- Andrew Massey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8253-932X)
- Aaron L. Baggish (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2042-1489)
- Sanjay Sharma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3630-6138)
Institutions
- English Institute of Sport (GB)
- St George's, University of London (GB)
- University of Washington (US)
- Benha University (EG)
- Heart and Stroke Foundation (CA)
- Sahlgrenska University Hospital (SE)
- Fédération Internationale de Football Association (CH)
- Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine (CA)
- St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne (AU)
- Royal Brompton Hospital (GB)
- Qatar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital (QA)
- Klinik Hirslanden (CH)
- Zurich Heart House (CH)
- St George's Hospital (GB)
- Federazione Medico Sportiva Italiana (IT)
- Faculdade São Leopoldo Mandic (BR)
- Institute for Exercise and Environmental Medicine (US)
- National Urban League (US)
- Ghana Health Service (GH)
- Informa Healthcare (GB)
- St Vincents Institute of Medical Research (AU)
- The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (US)
- University of Lausanne (CH)
Publication Details
- Journal
- British Journal of Sports Medicine
- Published
- 2025-04-03
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2025-109751
- Citations
- 9
- Primary Topic
- Cardiovascular Effects of Exercise
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 12.49