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FA football matches to be delayed for one minute to raise mental health awareness

Short film narrated by the Duke of Cambridge to be played at the start of games 

Sophie Gallagher
Friday 03 January 2020 09:29 GMT
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Prince William FA Cup mental health awareness

This weekend all 32 FA Cup football matches will be delayed by one minute, in a historic first, in a bid to raise awareness around mental health in the sport.

The third-round fixtures, starting at 12.30 on Saturday 4 January, will be paused until a video, narrated by Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, has been shown.

Fans watching in stadiums and at home will see the film, which is a collaboration between Public Health England and the Football Association, and features famous faces including Frank Lampard, Dele Alli and Jordan Pickford.

It is hoped it will reach millions of football fans, 69 per cent of whom are men, watching across the country, and encourage them to ‘take a minute’ to start looking after their mental health and that of family and friends.

A YouGov survey commissioned by PHE shows men in England are less likely than women to seek help or take self-care actions for early signs of common mental health concerns (45 per cent had never taken action compared to 31 per cent of women).

It also found of those who did take steps to manage or improve their mental health, 73 per cent wish they had done it sooner.

Duncan Selbie, chief executive of PHE, says:“As every fan knows, football has its highs and lows - and so does life.

“This is a fantastic opportunity to bring the football community together in an important conversation about how we can all take care of our mental health, starting with a few simple actions.”

Former footballer and current manager of Chelsea FC, Frank Lampard, says: “I came from a family where we bottled up a lot of emotions, feelings and sometimes anxieties.

“I think a huge thing now is the great campaigns that are going on encouraging people to speak openly about looking after your mental health and not feel bad about how you feel inside."

Mark Bullingham, The FA’s Chief Executive, said: “We hope that the symbolic 60 second delay to all Emirates FA Cup Third Round fixtures will be the start of a journey for better mental health for the millions who will be watching one of English football’s most famous weekends.”

In the film, Tottenham Hotspur FC footballer, Dele Alli, says he feels a lot of people deal with their problems “by themselves” and haven’t got people they can talk to.

Chris Kamara, says he normally deals with stress by going for a long walk on his own to try and think things over. “I'm a very private person and didn’t like to share my problems, which I now know is the wrong thing to do,” he adds.

Jesse Lingard says he does yoga twice a week to look after his mental health and speaks to his family about what he is going through.

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