Overview

• London High Court to hear plea to combine claims from 475 former sportspeople into a group action lawsuit against the governing bodies of their sports.
• Claims are from 450 rugby players and 25 soccer players against global and British governing bodies in Rugby Union, Rugby League and football.
• Players allege the governing bodies failed in their duty of care, exposing them to concussion and non-concussion injuries leading to disorders such as motor neurone disease, early onset dementia, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), epilepsy and Parkinson's disease.
• Symptoms reported by players include chronic depression, aggression, significant memory loss, incontinence, drug and alcohol addiction and in some cases, suicide attempts.
• World Rugby, England's Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) express sadness over the struggles of former players, affirming their commitment to player welfare.