Leeds United are calling on our incredible fanbase to learn CPR with the help of the British Heart Foundation (BHF) ahead of our game against Sunderland in the Sky Bet Championship.
Fan research from Sky Bet has revealed that while many fans will likely need to use CPR in their lifetime (44% have been in a situation where somebody needed CPR), 45% would lack the confidence to perform it should they be required to.
Leeds United and Sunderland players will get behind the campaign by warming up in specially designed Every Minute Matters t-shirts to help raise awareness of the importance of learning CPR, while LED perimeter boards at the Stadium of Light and the matchday programme will also carry campaign messaging.
It comes as Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation’s ‘Every Minute Matters’ campaign celebrates a major milestone. The campaign has helped inspire over 100,000 people to start learning life-saving CPR through the BHF’s online tool RevivR since the partnership began in May.
The groundbreaking campaign is on a mission to raise donations of up to £3 million for the charity and to encourage 270,000 people to learn CPR – equivalent to three Wembley Stadiums.
In the days leading up to the game, Luton Town captain and ‘Every Minute Matters’ ambassador Tom Lockyer visited his Wales international teammate and our club captain Ethan Ampadu at Thorp Arch to discuss the campaign, with hopes of the two of them helping to encourage as many people as possible to learn CPR.
Lockyer said: “CPR is a vital skill that helped save my life and saves thousands more every year. It’s amazing that we’ve reached the 100,000 mark, but what’s clear is that we need to bridge this confidence gap.
“Leeds and Sunderland are two of the biggest and best supported clubs in the whole of the EFL so we are keen to get them on board and behind the campaign and show their fans that learning CPR is simple, easy and takes just 15 minutes via the BHF’s online RevivR tool.”
Ampadu added: “I’m going to log on and I’m going to learn [CPR], because like you say, you never know if you’re going to be around that moment.”
An incredible £639,000 has been raised so far, including £380,000 from the Sky Bet Play Offs in May and £259,000 since August through Sky Bet’s pledges to donate £10,000 for every ‘stoppage time’ EFL goal, and £1000 for every goal scored over the weekend of World Heart Day.
The British Heart Foundation will use the money raised by the campaign so far to help continue to fund its community resuscitation activity, training more people in lifesaving CPR and defibrillation skills. This will include funding 80 more community defibrillators across the UK.
Dr Charmaine Griffiths, Chief Executive at the British Heart Foundation (BHF), said: “At a time when British Heart Foundation’s work has never been more needed, Every Minute Matters is going from strength to strength and Sky Bet’s generous support is making a real difference. The money raised through this partnership will be truly lifesaving.
“Together with Sky Bet, not only will we be able to place defibrillators in communities that need them most, but we’ll be able to ensure that fans, families and communities across the country can be trained in lifesaving CPR and defibrillation. Creating a nation of lifesavers will give people the best chance of survival in the event of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.”
There are more than 30,000 out of hospital cardiac arrests in the UK each year, equating to at least five every 90 minutes. Each minute that passes without CPR reduces the chance of survival by up to 10 per cent. And tragically, less than one in ten people survive, often because those around them lack the skills or confidence to perform CPR.
Sky Bet Chief Commercial Officer Steve Birch said: “We set ourselves a really ambitious goal of encouraging 270,000 people to begin learning CPR by May 2025 and it’s amazing to reach the 100,000 mark. Hopefully this weekend can raise awareness of the importance of learning this life saving skills to a whole other level with the support of Leeds and Sunderland.”
To learn CPR in just 15 minutes, visit bhf.org.uk/revivr
