That more English football professionals snuff.
Now the players’ union is starting an investigation to find out how common the addiction is.
– There is a high degree of concern in football about players using snus, says Dr Daniel Read.
Jack Grealish, Wayne Rooney, Jamie Vardy – and possibly many more. Sweden has a long snus tradition behind it, but in recent years it has also become increasingly common in England and among the country’s football stars.
Snuff use caused the players’ union PFA to alert in March that several players are undergoing treatment to overcome their addiction.
Now the PFA wants to investigate how common snus really is and increase awareness of its negative health effects, reports BBC.
Dr Daniel Read, at the Institute for Sport Business at Loughborough University London, is leading the study.
– There is a high degree of concern within football about players using snus and the potential impact this could have on their welfare. Through this project with the PFA, we hope to learn more from the players’ perspective to better support their physical and mental wellbeing,” he told the BBC.
Negative effects
The first results from the study will be presented later this year.
– Through our conversations with players and their clubs, we are aware that there is an increase in the use of snus during matches. We want to use research like this to better understand that trend, players’ motivations and how aware they are of the risks, says Dr Michael Bennett.
– We can then use that knowledge to ensure that members are aware of the negative effects that can be associated with snuff use, he continues.
The BBC writes that heart disease and oral disease are linked to snus, which is currently legal to use but illegal to sell in Great Britain.