Doctors in Gloucestershire will offer free football tickets to patients with depression under a new social prescribing scheme.
The initiative, launching this season, has been developed by Labour MP Dr Simon Opher and Ecotricity owner Dale Vince.
It will offer patients at surgeries across Gloucestershire tickets to National League side Forest Green Rovers at The New Lawn stadium in Nailsworth.
Dr Opher, a former GP and now MP for Stroud, has long supported social prescribing – the use of non-medical activities to support mental health – particularly for people with mild to moderate depression.
These forms of depression, while less severe than major depressive disorder, can still interfere with everyday life. Past prescriptions have included comedy nights and gardening sessions.
The scheme is set to run for the full season, beginning with Forest Green’s home match against Yeovil Town on 16 August. All tickets are being donated free by the club, which Mr Vince has owned since 2010.
Dr Opher said around four in five patients usually continue with prescribed activities, and that one of the key benefits is addressing loneliness.
Dr Opher told PA news agency: “I do think there’s something about watching football which does give you a sense of community,”
“I think one of the biggest problems in our society is social isolation. It’s really quite toxic, actually, and it’s created in the modern world by social media.
“Pubs aren’t so popular, we don’t get out as much, we don’t live in extended families, so that is very bad for you. You can quantify it, it’s the same health risk as smoking about 20 cigarettes a day. It’s really bad.
“One of the things here is just getting people out and socialising.”
He added: “Football isn’t going to be for everyone. Nothing is, but we need a range of options.
“Football is about socialising and roaring on your team, getting excited, taking yourself out of your own life for a short while, and living through something else.”
Dr Opher has raised concerns about the overprescription of antidepressants, particularly for those with mild or moderate symptoms.
He said he does not believe medication is always the best first-line approach in such cases.
He said: “If you’ve got severe depression then I would always recommend antidepressants, but a large majority of people have got what they call mild to moderate depression, and the tendency at the moment is to give them tablets, because there’s no mental health support really, it can take six months to get it, and you feel like you need to do something.
“That’s why we’ve got to a stage where we’ve got 8.7 million people on antidepressants, so we need to try something else.”
The number of people on antidepressants rose by 2.1 per cent last year compared to 2022/23.
Patients at surgeries near Forest Green’s stadium in Nailsworth will be referred to attend matches as part of the initiative.
There is no guarantee the football will always boost moods – Forest Green suffered a penalty shootout loss to Southend in the playoffs last season.
Mr Vince said: “I think it’d be a great thing if football clubs up and down the country could reach out to people and do this.
“Men typically don’t really talk about their issues, that’s the thing, and you get loneliness and things like that as well.
“In my life I’ve had periods of my life where I’ve been a bit fed up, and excluded … a bit down from time to time, it’s easy to spiral downwards when you’re not in contact with people and I just wanted to do something with that.”
He added: “Forest Green has been one of the best experiences of my life, and I’m keen to share that.”
