Source: The Conversation – UK
On football pitches across the UK, thousands of people in their 50s, 60s and 70s are proving that the beautiful game does not have to end with age. Walking football is a variation of running football (or soccer) mostly targeted at older people.
But what’s it like to play football later in life? According to the walking footballers I interviewed for my latest research, the sport has become a way for them to push back against common ideas of ageing as a period defined by illness, decline and dependence.
Created in 2011, walking football provides an opportunity for people to be physically and socially active as they get older. It is estimated that around 100,000 people in England alone played walking football last year.
While there is some research on the physiological and psychological benefits of walking football, data has been limited in scale and substance.
For my study, I interviewed 53 men and 12 women who played walking football. I wanted to find out what participation in walking football meant to them. I asked them about why they initially became involved in walking football, what its major benefits and drawbacks are and how it feels to play the game.
Body positivity
Players spoke positively about their bodies in three main ways. First, they highlighted the physical benefits of playing. For some, walking football was a way to stay fit. For others, it helped them lose weight or maintain their health.
As Theodore, 68, told me, the game gives him a chance to “get out and participate, mix, and get your body in a state whereby you’re a lot physically and psychologically healthier”. Good health and physical fitness were often a source of pride. But players were also keen to challenge the idea that walking football is easy. Many described it as physically demanding and highly competitive. Larry, 67, called it “hard” and “skilful”. Patrick, 51, said it was “a lot more intense than I actually thought it was going to be”.
Second, players spoke about the simple pleasure of playing football again. For many, especially those who had played the traditional game when they were younger, there was joy in rediscovering skills they thought they had lost.
Finn, 65, described the experience this way: “You think you’re never going to kick a ball again or do anything. And all of a sudden, all that twisting and turning, it’s still there. I hit some goals in last night. It was like going back to when I was twenty”.
Stories like this suggest that walking football is about more than exercise. It can reconnect people with an important part of their identity and remind them of what their bodies are still capable of doing.
Third, players acknowledged that aches, pains and injuries are part of the game. But many did not see this as a reason to stop playing. Some even wore their discomfort as a “badge of honour”, as Jasper, 70, put it.
This runs against common assumptions that older people will avoid activities that carry a risk of pain or injury. Many participants described experiencing everything from sore muscles to broken bones, yet still felt the benefits outweighed the costs. As Vincent, 65, told me: “The pain is worth the pleasure”.
At the same time, players stressed the importance of looking after one another. They described matches being stopped when someone was injured and adaptations being made so that people with dementia or limited mobility could take part.
These examples reveal something important. Walking football is not simply about competition or fitness. It is also about care, inclusion and recognising the vulnerabilities that can come with growing older.
Taken together, these experiences suggest that sport provides a way for older people to talk positively about their bodies. Older people are recognised and celebrated because of their strength, skill and vitality.
Read more:
The Untold Stories of Women Football Fans: celebrating memories, calling out prejudice
Of course, not everyone experiences ageing in the same way. Some people face physical barriers that make exercise difficult or impossible. Others may not see ageing as a positive experience.
As the sociologist Kass Gibson has argued, celebrating exercise without recognising wider social factors can be misleading. Health is shaped by much more than individual activity levels. Poverty, inequality and access to support all matter. As Gibson puts it, “you cannot jog your way out of poverty, nor press-up depression away”.
Those caveats are important. But for the people in my study, walking football was about far more than keeping fit. It offered a way to tell a different story about ageing – one centred on enjoyment, connection and possibility. Their experiences deserve to be taken seriously.
Gareth M. Thomas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Original source: https://analysis1.mil-osi.com/2026/07/15/why-walking-football-offers-older-people-a-different-story-about-ageing/