As part of the national smokefree campaign, the Department of Health has launched a campaign called Smokefree United to help football fans and supporters well and truly kick the habit.

A virtual football club of quitters, Smokefree United has been supported by football legends John Barnes, Ian Wright and Gianfranco Zola and The Premier League.

Former Liverpool and England star, Barnes has been publicly tapping up players to sign for United.

“I’d urge all football fans and players who have thought about quitting to sign for Smokefree United. Quitting smoking will have a huge impact on your game and you’ll immediately become more competitive because your cardiovascular fitness will improve, increasing the amount of time you’ll be able to spend on the pitch.” With 80% of English male smokers being football fans, using the beautiful game to tackle this filthy habit is a clever concept and Leicester City legend Steve Walsh has lent his support to the campaign.

“Using football to motivate people to give up smoking is a great idea. Being part of a team helps you to stay focused on your goals. You can help each other through the tough times and celebrate together when you’ve achieved something.“

“Football is a great way of bringing people together and getting healthy. Quitting smoking is a big challenge, but the benefits of doing so are even bigger. You will feel fitter, notice you’ve got more cash in your wallet and your game will improve.”

Quitters can either register on the web hub, nhs.uk/smokefreeunited, where they will receive five supportive emails over four weeks from Ian Wright, or sign up by text, which will get them five texts over four weeks, supporting and driving them on.

At every stage, quitters will be encouraged to contact their local stop smoking service or the stop smoking helpline.

The website also features league tables for each division from the Premiership to the Blue Square Premier, totalling the number of fans that have given up smoking for each team.

Leicester City fans currently lie 7th in the Championship table, with a total of 16 quitters after seven weeks. The league leaders are Newcastle with 45. So, if you’ve been thinking about quitting, there’s yet another reason to do so, to get your team further up the table!

New research has shown that 41% of male smokers in England play football and eighty-two per cent of them are concerned about the effect smoking has on their performance and want to quit.

Do you want to get more out of your game? Are you struggling to keep up with your kids? If so, now is the time to stub out the fags for good. Don’t put it off any longer, sign for Smokefree United for the coaching and support you need to help you quit.