Mortimer, Paul, Parris, Sue, Jones, Kevin, Henry, Leroi ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6303-7634 and Moore, Sian (2022) The Boy in the Man’s Mask: The Duty of Care on Football Academies. Report. University of Greenwich; Goldsmiths College; British Academy, London, UK.

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Abstract

The suicide of Jeremy Wisten has prompted calls for a duty of care for young professional footballers and Academy trainees1, in an environment where it has been estimated that less than one per cent will go on to become a paid professional. These calls reinforce research suggesting that the welfare needs of trainees are compromised by an environment in which they are treated as a commodity and where pressures to perform from clubs, coaches, families and society mean they are reluctant to communicate personal and professional issues, particularly if there is a culture of intimidation and verbal and physical abuse. This research is intended to create a deeper understanding of the emotional impact football culture has on children and young people – the boy in the man’s mask - and therefore the adults they become in and beyond football. The study explores the experiences of trainees attached to Academies and the duty of care football Academies exercise regarding safeguarding of the mental health and wellbeing of those young people. It makes suggestions on programmes which might be put in place to support Academies and their staff in identifying and dealing with psycho-social issues. The research is based upon 36 interviews, including 11 coaches with responsibility for different age groups, five staff in professional support roles, 18 trainees and ex-trainees from different age groups (16+) and two family members of trainees. In respect of the trainees, coaches and other professionals, their experiences were not solely connected to the Academies where the interviews took place. It is important to highlight most interviewees had numerous experiences across several Academies/clubs. The report is very much a look through a long window across football from the top to the bottom. The interviewers brought values and skills from education and counselling as well as having intimate knowledge of football as an ex-professional player and player care and welfare specialist. Trainees and staff in the Academies often did not have a language to articulate their feelings and experiences. However, the emotional effect of this culture on these individuals was experienced by the interviewers through a non-verbal process called ‘projective identification’. Through the projection of feelings that could not be put into words, the interviewers were able to contain these unconscious communications, make sense of these feelings and put them back to the interviewees in an understandable form.

Item Type:	Monograph (Report)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	football, academies, duty of care
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC1200 Sports Medicine
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Greenwich Business School Greenwich Business School > Centre for Research on Employment and Work (CREW) Greenwich Business School > School of Management and Marketing
Last Modified:	12 May 2025 11:08
URI:	http://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/50372

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