Soccer Smoking & Prevention
Prevent Smoking Among Soccer Players
| just using your campaign to get good public relations for themselves in the community. . Make it clear what you want the athletes to do. For example, do you want them to visit a local school and talk with a group of kids for 20 minutes about the importance of leading a healthy, tobacco-free lifestyle? Ask if the athletes would mind signing autographs for kids who take part in the event. . Outline the messages that you would like to stress, and put them in writing. When they are addressing their fans, the athletes will appreciate having talking points regarding the importance of healthy lifestyles free of tobacco and drugs as well as the harmful effects of tobacco use and its negative effects on athletic performance, strength, and endurance. . Let the athletes know that as respected and highly visible figures in the community, their presence in your campaign will draw attention to these important public health messages as well as the community education activities and events that you are planning. . During your conversations or in your correspondence, emphasize the importance of their communicating tobacco-free and other public health messages that could save lives. . Discuss sponsorship of various activities and approval of outside sponsorship. Make sure that sponsors do not conflict with products that the athletes are already endorsing. Ask the athletes' agents and team community relations departments if they have ideas regarding sponsorship opportunities. The Tobacco-Free Sports Playbook Keep People In the Loop . If you are developing a poster or other communication product, make sure that it is approved by the athlete, agent, team, school, and in some cases, the national sports league (e.g., Major League Baseball, National Football League) and possibly an international federation, such as the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) if you are working on an international football/soccer campaign. . Always express your appreciation by writing follow-up thank you notes. Be sure to include newspaper clippings and photos for the athlete, agent, and team contacts' files. These kind gestures are always appreciated. They'll want to work with you again. Or ganiz e Team and Stadium E v en ts The popularity of sporting events in the United States makes them an effective means of grabbing kids' attention and conveying important health messages. These events also present some terrific opportunities for establishing partnerships with supporting organizations that might be willing to help you. Before approaching a professional team with a proposal for an event, you must know what type of event you'd like to use to promote your messages to youth. Consider these ideas: . Promote your tobacco-free message to youth during opening ceremonies or half-time events. For instance, identify local "Tobacco-Free Stars"- kids who have been actively involved in local tobacco-control efforts through their schools or teams-and honor them at the game. . Use the ceremonial first pitch at baseball games or a coin toss at other events to promote your messages. For example, link a school contest to the ballpark game so that contest winners get to throw out the first pitch and share their health messages with the crowd. . Display your tobacco-free messages on the stadium's jumbo video screens or on posters at the stadium. . Pass out educational flyers to youth and their parents, and hang banners displaying your messages in the stadium. (Check out the free materials available from the CDC Media Campaign Resource Center and Publications Catalog at www.cdc.gov/tobacco.) . Have team members sign autographs for kids, all the while conveying positive messages about sports and the benefits of being tobacco-free. . Set up a booth near the concession stand where the team's physicians and certified athletic trainers can meet with kids and their parents to talk about the addictive effects of tobacco, including bidis, cigars, and spit/chew tobacco. They can also educate youth about the many health benefits of being involved in a sport. . Find out if your local sports team's radio station allows interviews before the game or during the game's commentary. If so, ask to be on the program to talk about your event and about tobacco-free sports. |
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| Total Soccer Fitness |
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