PLAYING football prevents around 5000 mental health and over 8000 cardiovascular disease cases in a year, according to a new study by European football's governing body.
The report commissioned by UEFA also said the game delivers more than £1bn of positive value to Scottish society.
The study says it has uncovered “unique tangible evidence” of the impact the national sport has on the country’s economic, social and health benefits.
It says our national game contributes more than £200m directly into the Scottish economy ,over £300m in social benefits and health benefits worth almost £700m.
It says contributes to major healthcare savings, with around £40m of savings on mental health, calculated at around 5000 cases prevented, almost £25m in cardiovascular disease and £10m in type-2 diabetes.
The research was undertaken with the expert help of an academic advisory panel gleaned from educational institutions such as Birmingham, Brunel and Loughborough Universities.
Ian Maxwell, Scottish FA chief executive said: “We have known for decades the positive impact football as the national sport has on the population: it can inspire a nation, unite families and entire communities, and make society a better place.
“The findings in the UEFA GROW report outline the extent to which football is a force for good in helping to deliver the Scottish Government’s health and wellbeing agenda, and also the dramatic impact the national game has on the economy."
“We committed to this project to reaffirm football’s place as an essential fabric of Scottish society and we are pleased to present these findings to the Scottish Government.
"We are grateful for their ongoing support to the many grassroots projects and look forward to having more substantive conversations with the First Minister and her key cabinet secretaries to make even greater inroads in improving the health and wellbeing of Scottish society through the power of football, whilst reinforcing our position as a major contributor to the country’s economy.”
Scotland has 147,555 registered players but an estimated 780,000 people play the game in total, mostly at an informal level. Aound 89% of those participants are male.
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