Wolves' powerful mental health video urges fans not to suffer in silence

There's always someone to talk to and there's always someone who who will listen.

To highlight how important it is to open up, Wolverhampton Wanderers have produced an emotional video supporting the Premier League's Inside Matters campaign as well as Mental Health Awareness Week.

Inside Matters is encouraging fans to check in on each other and kick off a conversation about mental health.

The campaign, featuring at all Premier League matches between 11 and 15 May, is being supported by clubs, players and managers, who are revealing their own struggles, encouraging supporters to talk, as well as highlighting places where people can get support if they are struggling.

Wolves' video aims to raise awareness of suicide prevention and the importance of looking after your mental health.

In the video, local grime and rap artist Reepa stands outside Molineux on a matchday, wearing a Wolves scarf as a blindfold, holding up a placard highlighting statistics around suicide and offering a hug and a chat.

Reepa is approached by several fans, who hug and talk about the mental health struggles that they or someone close to them have faced.

There were four people that Wolves met, who weren't included in the video, that were severely struggling with their mental health and received immediate support as well as being signposted to mental health services.

"Filming that video was a really telling experience and I could see how much it meant to the people who engaged," Reepa told the club's official website. "I think because I was blindfolded people were more inclined to stop and talk as they didn’t feel they were going to be judged.

"Some tapped me on the shoulder and had a brief interaction whereas others stopped for a hug or a chat and were talking about things that had happened to them both recently, or in years gone by.

"And a lot of people were checking if I was OK which I really appreciated but it wasn't about me - I have had my own struggles but this was more about the fans who were engaging."

The reaction to the video has been extraordinary.

So far it has received nine million views on X (formerly Twitter) and six million on Instagram with many people responding to the video by opening up about their own mental health struggles.

The video has also resonated deeply within the football community.

Last weekend, Luton Town were all but relegated from the Premier League after a 3-1 defeat at West Ham United.

And after the match, Hatters' captain Carlton Morris referenced the impact the video had on him.

"I was sat in bed last night and watched a 10-minute video that Wolves put out for mental health awareness and seeing how much the football means to the fans, and how much we do impact people’s lives, it made me think about that straight away to be honest," he said.

"At the end of the game, going over to our fans, being stood there for 10 minutes, the lads giving out our shirts, them clapping and then screaming for us - it does touch a nerve to be honest, and it does put things into perspective because these guys work all week to come and watch us kick a football about."

For further mental health support, fans can head to: Get help | Mental Health Foundation