Mississippi football legend Brett Favre announced on Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
The former Green Bay Packers quarterback and football Hall of Famer delivered the news while at a Congressional hearing on federal welfare reform.
Favre was testifying before the House Ways and Means Committee about an investment in Prevacus, a company that is developing a concussion drug.
“Sadly, I also lost an investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug I thought would help others,” Favre said in the hearing, per Fox News. “I’m sure you’ll understand, while it’s too late for me because I’ve recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, this is also a cause dear to my heart.”
Recently, the 54-year-old Favre has been open about the damage done by the concussions he suffered while playing football—and there have been a lot of concussions. During a 2018 interview on theToday show, Favre was asked to estimate how many concussions he may have incurred while playing professional football. While he said he knows of only “three or four” for sure, he suspects he may have had many, many more.
“When you have ringing of the ears, seeing stars, that’s a concussion,” Favre told the Today show per ESPN. “And if that is a concussion, I’ve had hundreds, maybe thousands, throughout my career, which is frightening.”
Back in 2021, Favre encouraged parents to keep their children away from tackle football until the age of 14. “Having kids play before high school is just not worth the risk,” Favre said in a statement. ”CTE is a terrible disease, and we need to do everything we can to prevent it for the next generation of football players.”
Parkinson’s is a brain disorder that causes unintended or uncontrollable movements such as shaking and difficulty with balance and coordination. It typically, gradually, worsens over time.