[heygrady]

Maybe it's too far to prescribe "red v. blue" to this issue but it is indeed divisive. High school football has been controversial for many years because of safety concerns [1]. There is some anecdotal evidence that soccer is more popular in blue states [2]. For years, the NFL and its supporters claimed that concussion concerns were greatly overstated [3].

Also anecdotally, I had a Lyft driver who was also a high school football coach who was well versed in how many concussions occur in soccer. He wanted to tell me that football is as safe/dangerous as any other sport. That type of denialism--believing that mounting evidence can be safely ignored--is found in other "red" issues such as climate change, coal jobs, and Russia-gate.

[1] High schools are closing football programs. https://www.si.com/mmqb/2015/11/23/high-schools-dropping-and...

[2] Soccer is possibly a blue state thing. http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2014/jul/10/...

[3] NFL doctors downplayed the dangers. http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/03/18/nfl-doctor-s...