Professor Liam Donaldson's report stated that each adult should take at least thirty minutes of exercise a day and children sixty minutes.

Trevor Brooking, former Chairman of Sport England, now The FA's Director of Football Development, said:

"This advice is very welcome.

"The Chief Medical Officer’s advice couldn’t be clearer, football is good for you.

"Already, seven million adults and five million children regularly play football, making The FA one of the largest exercise providers in the country.

"It is now vital that we build on this platform and make available more opportunities for people to play the game.

"This means investing in facilities and people so that more people have access to good quality football.

"The FA is working closely with the Government and Sport England to meet the challenges set by Professor Donaldson. It will require significant extra investment form Government, but this is money well spent if it saves us from the cost of an obese nation."