Out of control: professional footballers, migration, and the consequences for mental health

By Richard Elliott

Abstract

The process of international migration can be stressful – it is rarely simple or straightforward. Scholars have argued that some migrant groups face greater exposure to risk factors associated with the development of common mental disorders (CMDs) than others. In this chapter, I draw on scholarship tracing the migrations of general populations to show that migrant professional football players may be one such group who are exposed to a greater risk of developing CMDs when they engage in the process of international transfer. I do this by considering the levels of control over their careers that these players possess when relocating across national borders and the effect that this can have in the context of their mental health. I also consider the often-unpredictable nature of international migration for elite footballers and the challenges that this presents, before discussing the role that employers can play in supporting the mental health of players during periods of international transfer. In this final section, I pose a number of questions that employers should ask when recruiting players from beyond their own borders.