The National Football League’s $350 million “Play 60” health and exercise program for school kids is actually a trojan horse for NFL marketing, critics say, at a time when kids’ football participation is declining due to concerns about brain damage.
Now in its 10th year, Play 60 encourages kids to exercise for 60 minutes every day, offering a curriculum of football-themed drills and nutrition tips as well as $4,000 grants to buy gym equipment. The league has partnered with the American Heart Association, Special Olympics, United Way, and other public health advocates on the program, which has reached 73,000 schools, according to the league, more than half of all public and private schools nationwide.