NFL Charities, the charitable foundation of the US-based National Football League (NFL), has awarded a three-year, US$1.8m (£1.1m, €1.2m) grant to The Cooper Institute to support youth health.

The grant will go to The Cooper Institute's Fitnessgram programme, a physical fitness assessment tool which aims to prevent childhood obesity.

As a result of the grant, a new NFL Play 60 Fitnessgram will be made available free of charge to 1,120 schools throughout each of the 32 locations which host an NFL franchise.

Data will be collected from student fitness assessments over the course of three years to form a youth longitudinal study tracking health-related fitness results and analyzing how best to intervene. The resulting data will be provided to local, state, and national policy makers.

Fitnessgram measures overall health through six tests looking at aerobic capacity, body composition, muscular endurance, strength and flexibility. Results, based on age and gender, are available in a report that physical education teachers can use to educate parents and students and encourage healthy behaviours.

Kenneth Cooper, dubbed the "father of aerobics" and founder of The Cooper Institute in Dallas, said: "Our studies have shown that, overall, fit and healthy students are more successful in school. Together with schools and parents we can be part of the solution in an effort that may help shape healthy bodies and minds, simply by increasing physical activity."

Formed in 1973, NFL Charities is a nonprofit organization that enables the professional American football league to contribute collectively to charitable causes on a national level.