Why walking football offers older people a different story about ageing

On football pitches across the UK, thousands of people in their 50s, 60s and 70s are proving that the beautiful game does not have to end with age. Walking football is a variation of running football (or soccer) mostly targeted at older people. But what’s it like to play football later in life? According to the walking footballers I interviewed for my latest research, the sport has become a way for them to push back against common ideas of ageing as a period defined by illness, decline and…