Examining the mental health status of referees in the turkish professional football league.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the mental health (MH) status of referees who officiate in the Turkish professional football leagues. METHOD: An online survey was sent to all referees in the Turkish professional football leagues (n = 630) incorporating standardized scales assessing depression, anxiety, and stress. RESULTS: A total of 433 referees participated in the study, yielding a response rate of 68.7%. Younger referees (18-27 years) reported higher depression (p = 0.01), anxiety (p < 0.01), and stress (p < 0.01) scores than older (>38 years) refereees. Depression, anxiety, and stress scores of single referees were higher compared to married referees (all p < 0.01). Lower-level referees reported higher depression (p < 0.01), anxiety (p = 0.01), and stress (p < 0.01) scores than their higher-level counterparts. Higher depression, anxiety, and stress scores were also associated with less income, performance concerns, severe injury history, and inadequate social support. CONCLUSION: MH problems in referees were associated with a wide range of variables including younger age, being single, refereeing at lower-levels, performance concerns, and inadequate social support. In light of these results, MH assessments should be undertaken with referees to detect which officials are at greater risk of MH problems. Doing so will help to enable appropriate and timely MH interventions.

The psychological impact of COVID-19 infection on athletes: example of professional male football players.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychological state of professional male football players who were infected by COVID-19.Method: The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21 and Kessler Psychological Distress Scale were sent to players' smartphones by sharing a link to the questionnaire. A total of 523 professional football players aged between 18-38 years from 93 different sports clubs participated in the study. The players were divided into 2 groups according to Sars-COV-2 PCR test results.Results: Depression, anxiety, stress, and psychological distress scores of football players who were infected by COVID-19 were higher compared to players who were not infected by COVID-19 (all p < 0.001). Depression, stress, and psychological distress scores were higher for football players with higher loss of income than players with lower loss of income (p = 0.017, p = 0.007, p = 0.005, respectively). There were significant differences in anxiety, depression, and psychological distress scores in favor of the 18-22-year age group (p = 0.002, p = 0.009, p = 0.004, respectively).Conclusion: COVID-19 infection negatively affects the psychological states of football players. The psychological states of professional football players who were infected by COVID-19 should be monitored closely and psychological support should be provided.