The AFL today has announced an official partnership with Movember's Ahead of the Game.
The partnership will ensure Movember's Ahead of the Game, a youth mental health program, will be delivered to 60,000 boys and girls aged 12 to 18 in community football over the next three years.
Ahead of the Game is a community sports-based mental fitness and resilience training program that educates young players about mental fitness and gives them the tools to deal with challenges, both on and off the field. It helps young people understand the importance of looking after their mental health, teaches them how to overcome life's challenges, build resilience and support their peers through tough times.
The program features interactive mental health literacy workshops that teach young players how to spot the signs of mental health challenges, how to talk about mental health with their teammates and those around them, and when and where to seek help.
It's delivered to young players during or immediately after a regular training session in their local club and engages the whole footy ecosystem, including young players' support networks such as parents and club volunteers.
Movember's Ahead of the Game was developed by leading Australian experts in mental health and sport from the University of Wollongong and is backed by a 5-year international program of scientific evidence. It was the only youth mental health literacy program endorsed in an evidence review commissioned by the AFL in 2020, and the AFL has been working with Movember to implement the program to scale across football communities for the past few years.
Rachel Carr, APAC Country Director at Movember, said: "Last year, we were able to deliver Movember's Ahead of the Game to over 1,100 players, coaches, and parents across the footy community, thanks to funds raised through St Kilda's Spud's Game. 97% of those participants have shown significant improvements in their mental health literacy levels, feeling more confident in their ability to recognise signs of mental ill-health, and knowing where to find help.
"Joining forces with the AFL allows us to scale this program across the entire football community. Engaging players and their support networks across various communities ensure they have strategies, skills, and a support network contributing to improved mental health and wellbeing. It's incredibly exciting to think of the impact we can have."
Dr Kate Hall, AFL Head of Mental Health and Wellbeing, said that football communities need safe and effective mental health and resilience programs that are specifically developed for young people.
"There are over 1 million young Australians who participate in community football and Movember's Ahead of the Game will now become an everyday part of grassroots footy for the AFL, alongside our other social impact programs," Dr Hall said.
"The program has proven to break down the common barriers associated with seeking help for mental health challenges. Barriers such as the stigma attached to seeking help, low levels of mental heath literacy, and awareness, meaning individuals are able to get the support they need at the earliest stage.
"By teaming up with Movember's Ahead of the Game, we are harnessing the power of football to build mentally fit young people and communities."
