Wolves’ meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion, along with all Premier League fixtures this weekend, will be dedicated to ‘Inside Matters’ to raise awareness of mental health and encourage fans to check in on the wellbeing of others.
Inside Matters will be visible at Premier League grounds including Molineux ahead of UK Mental Health Awareness Week (12th to 18th May). The league and clubs will use this period to help promote positive conversations around mental wellbeing, as well as highlighting the work carried out in communities and to support fans with their mental health.
Research conducted by the Premier League shows how football helps to connect people and start conversations. The league is encouraging fans to use their love of the game as a catalyst to reach out to fellow supporters, friends and family and make a difference to their mental wellbeing.
To help initiate conversations around mental health, players and managers from all Premier League clubs have been filmed making a call to check in on a friend or family member.
Wolves’ Matt Doherty features on the piece, phone calling his friend Ben. After their conversation, Doherty explained the importance of checking in with others.
Doherty said: “I’m not great at keeping in contact sometimes because you’ve got your own things going on. You think to yourself that you’ll give someone a call on the way home and forget. That’s something I have to self-improve, keeping in contact with people. You don’t know what’s going to happen.
“I’m glad that it opened my eyes a bit more. I could have come in and not thought about anything apart from training, so it helped me. You’re just breaking ice sometimes, so now he can reveal more later on, and maybe they’ll reveal more information. Now I’ll definitely be asking again.”
Doherty and the other conversations will be shared on Wolves and Premier League channels over the next week.
To help fans access professional support, the Premier League is collaborating with Shout, a free, confidential 24/7 text support service for anyone in the UK who is struggling with their mental health, run by the charity Mental Health Innovations.
Fans can text 'SHOUT' to 85258 to receive round-the-clock support from trained volunteers, supervised and supported in real time by an expert clinical team.
Through the partnership, the League is providing funding for Shout’s helpline services over the weekend and during Mental Health Awareness Week.
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said: “Football has a unique ability to bring people together and spark conversations. We want to harness this power to encourage fans to check in on those they care about.
“It is important that we and our clubs use our reach to encourage more conversations around mental health. With millions of fans watching games in stadiums and around the world, we can inspire people to take positive action by talking to each other, which could have a positive impact on those who really need it.
“Our collaboration with Shout will provide support for people in need across the country and we are pleased to be working with organisation that does such impactful work.”
Victoria Hornby, Mental Health Innovations CEO, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with the Premier League again as they offer mental health support to football fans across the nation.
“Taking the time to check in others can have a huge impact on someone’s wellbeing. Shout Volunteers have taken more than three million conversations with people in crisis, and we know that asking if someone is okay can be the start of helping them to open up about how they feel. It’s crucial that we keep the conversation going.
“This Mental Health Awareness Week and beyond, our 24/7 confidential, anonymous text service Shout is available for anyone who needs access to the help and support they deserve.”
For more information on Inside Matters visit premierleague.com/insidematters.
