Innovation: Football Fans in Training

Scotland

AAI Domain: Independent, healthy and secure living (physical exercise, lifelong learning)

There is an increasingly urgent need to develop social innovations that address the problems of sedentary lifestyles and obesity that are affecting a growing proportion of adults across virtually all wealthy societies. There are numerous health risks associated with a sedentary lifestyle and obesity including high blood pressure, developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease and an increased incidence of stroke as well as some cancers. These issues particularly affect men in Scotland where more than 25% die before they reach the age of 65, one of the highest rates of premature mortality in Europe and significantly worse than the rest of the United Kingdom.

Football Fans in Training (FFIT) was developed in 2010 by academics at the University of Edinburgh in partnership with Scottish football clubs with funding from the Office of the Chief Scientist for Scotland. It is aimed primarily at male football fans between the ages of 35 and 65 who have a waist size of 38 inches (95cm) or more and a BMI over 30 which is categorised as being obese. Having such a large waist measurement is also a good indicator of a high level of body fat around the major organs of the body which is a further indication of future health problems.

FFIT enrolled participants in a 12 week ‘training programme’ at their football club’s stadium or training facility that are run by the club’s community coaching staff. The programme includes physical activity classes, advice on being more active, how to lead a healthier lifestyle in relation to diet and alcohol consumption along with a pedometer to count the number of steps per day. A randomised control trial for the pilot stage showed that those who participated immediately in the programme lost nearly 5kg of weight and were more physically active compared to men who signed up but had to wait 12 months to participate and received only diet and weight loos booklets.

FFIT has been expanded initially with financial support from the Scottish Premier Football League Trust and is now funded by the Scottish government in recognition of the achievement of reaching a group in the population who do not usually engage with National Health Service or commercial weight management programme. More than 2,000 men across Scotland have participated in FFIT with the number increasing over time and this programme formed the basis for a European project funded under Framework Programme 7, Euro FIT, operating in the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal.

In relation to active ageing, Football Fans in Training and the larger European project are both aimed at increasing the level of physical activity among a group of people, men in their mid-30s to mid-60s, who are on the way to developing long-term health conditions and premature mortality. The programme involves health education on how to lead a healthier lifestyle, essentially a form of targeted lifelong learning, and uses men’s support for their football club to motivate them to engage in sustained behaviour change.

SPFL Trust website