Vinnie Jones Delivers Heartwarming Pep Talk in Three UK Ad

Three UK, the Chelsea Football Club and the Samaritans, have banded together to bring back a heartwarming campaign raising awareness about mental health, starring British actor and former professional footballer Vinnie Jones.

Using the hashtag #TalkMoreThanFootball, the campaign aims to break taboos and shed light on men's mental health issues that are often swept under the rug.

"We want them to talk about how they are feeling, be empowered to reach out and use their networks to have meaningful conversations with one another," Aislinn O’Connor, marketing director at Three UK & Ireland, shared the goal of the campaign in a news release.

"Whether that’s picking up the phone, sending a message or sharing Vinnie’s team talk, there has never been a better time to 'talk more than football,’" she added.

A two-minute spot was released today to send out this message to all football fans, coming in the form of Jones' heart-to-heart talk with Chelsea players, including Alfie Gilchris, Nicolas Jackson, Robert Sanchez and Cole Palmer.

 

 

 

 

 

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It begins with Jones entering the Chelsea FC locker room, gathering all the players to have a little chat.

"Don't look so scared. I'm a football man like yourselves. I've run a mile in your boots. Although in my day, they weren't so luminous," the actor begins his pep talk.

Jones then goes on to share his personal experiences as a football player, recalling his red cards and how his anger would often take control of him.

However, what makes the present different for Jones is that, now, he talks about his feelings instead of just bottling them up.

"Us football fans don't talk about our emotions. We'd rather talk about football day in, day out, who's going up, who's going down, who was the best midfielder of the '90s," he says.

The former Chelsea player then drives the point that football players can't just always talk about the sport, they need to tell someone how they're feeling, too. 

"And that could save a life," Jones emphasizes. "Be a mate that listens. Pick up the phone, send a text. If I can do it lads, so can you. So let's get out there, and let's talk more than football."

A Call to Open Up

Made together with creative agency Wonderhood Studios, the "Talk More Than Football" spot serves as the latest installation in the campaign that was launched last year.

It was driven by an insight, revealing that two in three football fans struggle with their mental health, while one in three have not opened up about it at all.

 

 

 

 

 

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Research by Three UK further indicates that more than a fourth of fans agreed that seeing famous people talk more regularly about mental health would help them talk about it themselves.

"While the UK loves chatting football, we could make a huge difference to our mental health by taking a minute to talk about something more," Wonderhood Studios Executive Creative Director Guy Hobbs said in a statement. 

"In this second iteration of our campaign, we hope to continue to change the narrative and get sports fans up and down the country to follow in Vinnie’s footsteps and look out for each other, listen to each other and help save lives."

Editing by Katherine 'Makkie' Maclang