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Prince William slams football clubs over mental health care
LONDON, Feb 28, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Prince William has launched a withering
broadside at football clubs, lambasting them for a “dereliction of duty” in
their lack of care for players mental health.
Prince William, who along with younger brother Prince Harry have spoken
openly about their own mental health issues, said clubs appeared to only see
the players as investments not as human beings.
Prince William, who is the President of English football’s governing body
the Football Association (FA), made the remarks during a meeting at Windsor
Park, the home of the Irish Football Association in Belfast.
“Some clubs don’t do anything about mental health. We’ve got to change the
whole way we look after players,” the 36-year-old Prince said to members of
Ahead of the Game, an organisation that delivers mental health support to
grassroots football clubs.
“Many players come from difficult backgrounds and may have all sorts of
issues going on.
“So just to have them as a complete financial asset…it’s a dereliction of
duty, I think.”
Prince William, who decried the manner in which players are “discarded” and
said they should be “supported” instead of the clubs wiping their hands of
them and told to “move on”, said he was in talks with the FA over the
possibility of organising a “Mental Health FA Cup”.
“We’re working on something with the FA at the moment, trying potentially
to get a mental health FA Cup to have a really punchy campaign we can base
something around,” said the Prince, who is a noted supporter of second tier
English side Aston Villa.
Prince William’s rare outspoken comments drew praise from across the
football community including Michael Bennett, the Professional Footballers’
Association’s head of welfare.
It emerged last year a record number of players approached the body for
support with mental health problems.
“Clearly, not everyone is earning o100,000 ($133,000) a week,” said
Bennett.
“There are things you don’t see. Players could suffer an untimely death in
the family or suffer a serious injury.
“Money isn’t going to stop emotional feelings surfacing,” he said.
Several former and current high profile players have spoken of their
battles with mental issues including Tottenham Hotspur and England star Danny
Rose, former England international Aaron Lennon and the now retired Stan
Collymore.
Collymore, 48, is presently struggling admitting for the last three weeks
he has been sleeping for 20 hours a day revealing his “longing never to wake”
but he said the Prince’s remarks could be a game changer for the issue.
“Prince William’s comments will carry a serious amount of clout and are
potentially game-changing for the way mental health issues are dealt with in
football,” Collymore wrote in the Daily Mirror.
“If this doesn’t resonate through the organisation, as guardians of the
game, and through the corridors of power at the Premier League and the
English Football League then, frankly, I don’t know what will.
“Football is like a factory these days with clubs looking for the next
Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.”
BSS/AFP/ARS/1633 hrs