Gareth Southgate and The Duke talk mental health as part of the Heads Up ‘Sound of Support’ series

In the final episode of the brand new Sound of Support series from our Heads Up campaign, The Duke of Cambridge sits down with England Manager Gareth Southgate to talk mental health.

In their open and candid conversation, Gareth shares his experiences of overcoming challenges which had an impact on his mental health – in his career and in his personal life. They also reflect on the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the nation’s mental wellbeing, and the role football can play in encouraging more people to seek support.

Discussing mental health, The Duke said: ““The idea of being able to talk about it is not a weakness. The idea of being able to be open about your emotions and fix a problem is a positive, it’s a strength, not a weakness. And I think that that culture is something that we hopefully are seeing a slight shift in.”

The six-part #SoundOfSupport series features current and former players, managers and well-known fans paired up to have candid conversations about mental heath, with the aim of helping football fans, and men in particular, feel more comfortable and confident in reaching out for support if they need it.

Gareth Southgate said: “I think there is very often this feeling ‘I’m the only one, there’s nowhere to go’ and some of the most successful people in the world have had these issues or have problems with self-confidence, self-belief. It doesn’t have to be an extreme case. There are various issues with people’s mental health, that can affect how they feel or how they perform and it’s making sure that we don’t feel that there’s a stigma for people, that it’s acceptable to look for help.”

Heads Up has been working with charity partners, Mind, CALM, Heads Together and Sporting Chance to make sure everyone can find the support they need, and help others do the same.