Coroner suggests that heading the ball may have played a role in Gordon McQueen’s brain injury.

A coroner has determined that heading a football “likely” played a role in the brain injury that was a contributing factor in the death of former Scotland defender Gordon McQueen.

McQueen, who earned 30 caps for Scotland from 1974 to 1981 and had a 16-year career with both Manchester United and Leeds, passed away at his residence in North Yorkshire in June 2023, at the age of 70.

The inquest in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, revealed that pneumonia was the cause of death, as he had become frail and confined to bed for several months.

This frailty was attributed to a combination of vascular dementia and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), according to coroner Jon Heath.

On Monday, the coroner provided a narrative conclusion, stating that McQueen died from pneumonia resulting from mixed vascular dementia and CTE.

He remarked: “It is likely that repetitive head impacts sustained by heading the ball while playing football contributed to the CTE.”