Mother Claims FA Did 'Nothing' to Prevent Son's Football Death

The mother of former Arsenal academy player Billy Vigar has stated that the Football Association (FA) did "nothing" to prevent her son's death, despite prior incidents that should have served as warnings.

Vigar, 21, died in September of the previous year after sustaining a severe brain injury during a match for his club, Chichester, when he collided with a concrete wall while attempting to keep the ball in play. His mother, Camilla Vigar, expressed her belief that the FA could have intervened to prevent the tragedy.

"(Billy) had his whole life ahead of him," Camilla Vigar told BBC Sport. "He was 21 years old and he lost it playing football when he didn't need to.

"I personally feel that the FA could have stopped Billy losing his life because they had so many warnings."

Her comments follow an investigation into a similar incident in 2022, where player Alex Fletcher fractured his skull after colliding with concrete barriers at Bath City's ground. According to Camilla Vigar, the FA conducted reviews with clubs after Fletcher's injury, but these actions proved insufficient.

"As far as I'm aware, nothing was done with that information and it just sat there," she said. "One of the clubs as far as I'm aware that was highlighted as being one of the high-risk clubs was Wingate, where Billy then lost his life."

The FA is understood to have initiated a safety review after Vigar's death, examining 900 clubs. More than 150 clubs within the men's and women's National League systems were subsequently instructed to implement changes, such as padding structural walls, "as soon as is reasonably practicable."

At the time of the review, the FA stated, "This important work is under way, and we will continue to fully support the clubs involved."

Billy Vigar was a product of Arsenal's Hale End academy, joining at 14 and progressing through their youth system. He signed a professional contract in 2022 and was part of the under-21 setup before moving to Hastings United in 2024 and then Chichester.

His family released a statement following his death, detailing that he was placed in an induced coma after sustaining a significant brain injury. An operation to aid his recovery was performed, but the injury ultimately proved fatal.

"The responses to the original update show how much Billy was thought of and loved within the sport," the statement read. "His family are devastated that this has happened whilst he was playing the sport that he loved."