Does pollen set off the cough?
Timing and symptom control for a child whose hay fever sets in on the lawn.
Read about football with hay feverChild With Asthma Playing Football: A Plan for the Garden and Park
Kit, Rules & Safety
Football and asthma can go together.
With the right plan, most children with asthma can kick a ball about the garden, and the plan is mostly small habits you can set up in five minutes.
Most children with asthma can play football, and Asthma + Lung UK's page on children and exercise names it as a good way to stay active. Keep the reliever inhaler with your child, follow the asthma action plan from the GP or nurse and warm up slowly (Cambridge leaflet). Slow down for a little cough. Stop and use the plan if they wheeze, say their chest feels tight, seem breathless or have a cough that keeps going. If the reliever is not helping, breathing gets worse or they cannot speak a full sentence, call 999 (NHS). Below is the routine, plus games that ask for less running.
For a long time I assumed asthma meant a seat on the bench. It doesn't have to, as long as the plan and the inhaler come out onto the lawn with the ball.
Three small habits
Asthma and Football Kids: The Before, During and After Routine
The NHS says to get advice from your doctor or nurse about exercising safely if exercise triggers your child's symptoms (the NHS page on living with asthma). The asthma action plan is where those answers live, so every medical choice below starts there.
| Before | During | After |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
This is an outline of NHS and charity advice, not a plan for your child.
Ask the nurse, not the internet
Reliever Inhaler Before Football: Whose Plan Is It?
Asthma + Lung UK says to make sure your child always has their reliever with them. A Cambridge NHS leaflet says a prescriber may recommend a reliever before sport.
Whether your child needs one, and when, is a call for the GP or asthma nurse. This page gives no doses and no timings, because the right answer is in your child's own plan.
At the next asthma review, ask: "Should my child use their reliever before football, and what should we do if they cough mid-game?"
Tell any coach, club or helper where the inhaler is and what the plan says. Show them before the game, not during it.
If pollen sets the cough off, see football with hay fever.
Pause is part of the game
When to Slow Down or Stop: Signs in Garden Words
I used to treat a pause as a game spoiled. A child who sits down for two minutes and comes back is playing better football than one who pushes through.
Exercise-triggered asthma can show up as coughing, wheeze, chest tightness and breathlessness (Cambridge leaflet). Three levels help you decide what to do.
Slow down
A little cough, or breathing harder than usual. Switch to a gentle passing game and sit down between goes.
Stop and use the plan
Wheeze, a tight chest, breathlessness or a cough that keeps going. Play stops, your child sits upright and you follow the action plan.
Call for help
The reliever is not working, breathing is getting worse or your child cannot speak a full sentence. Follow the NHS asthma attack steps and call 999.
Symptoms can ease and then return, so stay close for a while after play stops (Cambridge leaflet).
"Shall we sit this one out and have a drink? We'll go again when you're ready."
On a cold day, see cold weather football safety.
If exercise sets symptoms off in the garden, mention it to the GP or asthma nurse, because asthma may need better management (Asthma + Lung UK).
Same football, less running
Lower-Effort Football Games to Swap In
You can keep the football and turn down the running. Pick a row by how your child feels that day.
| Effort | Game idea | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Low | Sit-down passing, or a target game against a fence (see wall and fence passing) | The ball does the moving and your child can stay still between touches. |
| Medium | A ten-second dribble, then a rest (see tape-line dribbling course) | Short bursts with a built-in pause suit a child who tires or coughs quickly. |
| Higher | A quick goal game, only when your child feels well | More running, so keep it short and stop at the first sign from the stop list. |
Let your child set the pace.
What is known and what is not
What the NHS and the Charities Say, and Where It Stops
The NHS says to exercise regularly and to get advice on exercising safely if exercise triggers symptoms. It does not say anything about using a reliever before exercise.
Asthma + Lung UK says to keep the reliever with your child and names football among suitable activities. It is a charity, so this is supporting advice rather than trial evidence.
A Cambridge NHS leaflet describes a warm-up of 10 to 15 minutes and says symptoms typically peak 10 to 15 minutes after stopping. It is about exercise-triggered narrowing of the airways in general, not football.
These are guidance, not trials of garden football, and they describe asthma in general, so they cannot say what is right for your child. A search for a study of garden football in children with asthma found none.
Quick answers
Common Questions About Asthma and Football
Can a child with asthma play football?
Yes, for most. Asthma + Lung UK names football as a good activity and says the reliever should always be with them.
Should my child use their inhaler before football?
That depends on their asthma action plan, so ask the GP or asthma nurse. A prescriber may recommend a reliever before sport (Cambridge leaflet).
What should I do if my child wheezes during a game?
Stop play, sit them upright and follow the action plan. If the reliever is not helping, follow the NHS asthma attack steps and call 999.
Why does my child cough after football rather than during it?
Symptoms of exercise-triggered narrowing can peak 10 to 15 minutes after stopping (Cambridge leaflet). Keep the reliever close and stay near for a while.
What if cold air sets it off?
Use a slow warm-up and the cold weather checklist, and mention it at the next asthma review (Cambridge leaflet).
Keep going
Where to Go From Here
Three places to go next, depending on what you saw. And if the breathlessness came from a hit rather than asthma, what to do when a child is winded by a football covers it. Another long-term condition has its own page too: football with type 1 diabetes.
Is it a cold, frosty day?
A clear threshold and a short checklist for cold-weather play.
Read about cold weather footballNeed a gentler game?
Passing against a wall or fence, with the ball coming back to you.
Try wall and fence passingTonight's five minutes
Put the inhaler in the football bag.
Check the action plan is where you can find it and the reliever is in the bag. Then warm up slowly and let your child set the pace.