EUROPEAN FOOTBALL CLUBS COLLABORATE ON HEALTH PROGRAM FOR FANS

February 8, 2019

This week the European Fans in Training (EuroFIT) programme announced the findings of their pilot program which has successfully changed the diet and exercise habits of its participants.  

Using the intense loyalty many fans have for their clubs, EuroFIT is delivered by community coaches in football stadia in 12 weekly, 90-minute sessions, targeting the unhealthy habits of male  fans across 15 European football clubs. The programme increases physical activity, reducing time spent sitting and improving diet in a way that maintains change over the long term.

The results come from an EU-funded study on the program, with a randomised control trial of 1,113 men aged 30-65, carried out across the 15 professional football clubs in England, the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal. According to the research, the program resulted in important improvements in diet, weight, wellbeing, self-esteem, vitality and biomarkers of health risk.

According to research published in PLOS Medicine earlier this week, the EuroFIT programme has been more effective in improving physical activity than other physical activity intervention programmes.

After a year, men who took part in EuroFIT were taking on average 678 more steps a day than the comparison group. They had also improved their diet, eating more fruit and vegetables, less fat and less sugar and had increased wellbeing and vitality.

With a finalised version of the programme now successfully tested by additional pilot clubs in England, Netherlands, Norway and Portugal, project partner, European Healthy Stadia Network, will be responsible for the roll out of EuroFIT across Europe 

The clubs involved in the trial include: Arsenal, Everton, Newcastle United, Manchester City, Stoke City (England); ADO Den Haag, FC Groningen, PSV, Vitesse (the Netherlands); Rosenborg, Strømsgodset, Vålerenga (Norway); and SL Benfica, FC Porto, Sporting CP (Portugal).