England footballers Ben Chilwell and Beth Mead have opened up on their mental health struggles as the pair join a host of football figures in launching the ‘Create the Space’ platform – to help equip the sport to understand and deal with mental health.
The mental health crisis affects one in four people in the UK and Chilwell and Mead join other football figures, including Arsenal’s Vivianne Miedema and former Watford and Bolton striker Marvin Sordell, in launching ‘Create the Space’.
The mental health movement, developed by Common Goal, will not only use football as a tool to tackle mental health at a grassroots level, but also enable the elite level of the sport to become a space where everyone feels encouraged and comfortable to express themselves both on and off the pitch.
Speaking about her difficulties, Lionesses forward Mead said: “In January I lost my mum and because of the injury I couldn’t play football, which was always my escape, my happy place. Moments when people thought I was fine because of my outgoing personality, were very dark.
“It’s been a tough process to understand. Team-mates, people at the club, family and friends that supported me were so important, without them I could have been in a far darker place. I want to help create an environment in which it’s totally normal to address mental health.
“There’s not a perfect way of dealing with it, but if you feel you’re not alone it helps so much. We need to normalise mental health and in doing so that would go a long way.”
Meanwhile, Chelsea’s Chilwell added: “I have had my own mental health journey and I felt unsure about where to turn to for support.
“It’s down to our generation to change this and ensure that throughout football, all the way from the elite level to young people in community organisations, we have each other’s backs and we’re equipped with the tools to help ourselves and those around us.
“We need to move from talking about mental health to taking action, and Create the Space provides the platform for everyone wishing to take action to play a role in tackling mental health issues, whether they are playing in the Premier league, in the playground, or in the park.”
Common Goal will team up with Football Beyond Borders in the UK to pilot an integrated, experiential and holistic programme to empower mental health champions, ensuring that individuals throughout the football ecosystem are equipped to be supportive on and off the pitch.
Arsenal striker Miedema has also opened up about how she needed more support at certain points in her career.
Vivianne Miedema has also discussed her mental health struggles
“Where I grew up in the north of Holland it just wasn’t OK to talk about mental health, it just wasn’t done,” she said. “Then when I moved to Germany when I said I wasn’t feeling so good and needed more time, I was told that I needed to train harder.
“At Arsenal when I had the opportunity to see someone, I was suffering from panic attacks, but even then I still wasn’t sure if I should, as it had never been OK to address my mental health.
“The proudest moment of my career so far was to take care of myself and look after my mental health, not just the physical. Everybody needs support.”
Tottenham’s Molly Bartrip added: “Some years ago I was in a position where I wanted to commit suicide. You feel like you’re a burden, but it’s the strongest thing to ask for help.
“Mental health shouldn’t be a forbidden subject, it should be as open as having an injury. I now consider my vulnerability as a strength. For the first time in 10 years I’m not seeing a counsellor at the moment.
“I want football to become a safe space and hope that from the top level down to grassroots that’s what we can achieve with Create the Space.”
As well as the London-based players, Create the Space is being led in the US by United States defender Naomi Girma along with many of her USWNT and NWSL team-mates.
Other top international players, such as Portugal and Galatasaray midfielder Sergio Oliveira and Real Sociedad’s Spanish goalkeeper Alex Remiro, are also supporting Create the Space.
