The full inquest is due to begin at Stockport Coroner’s Court on 15 July, after new information was presented by Stiles’s family. Chris Morris, the coroner for Greater Manchester South, said the death had not been reported at the time “por razões não inteiramente claras” - for reasons not entirely clear.
A neuropathological examination by Dr Daniel du Plessis concluded that Alzheimer’s disease was the cause of death. It also identified advanced CTE, limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 disease and small-vessel cerebrovascular disease as factors linked to Stiles’s condition.
Morris has said the presence of a traumatic brain injury among those factors makes a full inquest necessary.
Stiles was a celebrated defensive midfielder for England and Manchester United, earning 28 international caps and making almost 400 appearances for the club. His later struggle with dementia, and the reported sale of his medals to help fund treatment, have made his story especially powerful.
His family now leads Football Families for Justice, a campaign seeking greater support for former players and accountability from football authorities. Dozens of ex-players and relatives are pursuing a wider legal case involving the Football Association, the Football Association of Wales and the English Football League.
The families allege that football bodies knew, or should have known, about the risks associated with repeated heading and concussion. The FA’s legal representatives have argued that science has not established a permanent link between heading, occasional concussions and lasting brain damage.
The inquest will not settle every legal question, but it could sharpen the debate around responsibility, evidence and compensation. It also arrives as football introduces tighter safeguards, including plans to remove heading from grassroots football up to under-11 level by 2026.
The next chapter will be whether the evidence heard in Stockport changes how the game protects young players - and how it supports the generations who built football’s history.