Remember the balls when I first started as a kid in the 1960s - real leather that felt like a brick when they became sodden... no wonder Jeff Astle etc suffered damage ...
Balls now are obviously much lighter - but there still needs to be a lot of research into the effect and also the impact of getting hit in the mush etc - and fully agree with you that the Initiative re kids is a good one ...
Rugby have those mouthguards that can measure head impact and necessitate a HIA ... added advantage in football is that it might also make it more difficult for the whingey ****s to speak..