Martin Bengtsson and the Dark Side of Football

Depression remains one of the greatest taboos in football. Martin Bengtsson captained Swedens U17 side; Inter Milan beat Ajax and Chelsea to sign him up. His career ended abruptly when aged just 19 he tried to kill himself. He survived, and in a candid portrait speaks about the futility of being rich and successful if you suffer depression – and how he put his life back together again. Vincent Gouttebarge, Chief Medical Officer at FIFPro, the world players’ union, shares his findings that footballers are more likely to suffer from depression that society in general. He is pushing for players’ mental health to be taken as seriously as their physical health. A special report for DW Kick off! by Alima Hotakie and Matthias Liebing. Camera by Thomas Lemmer. For more information, visit: http://multimedia.dw.com/depression-t... DW Sports http://www.dw.com/en/program/kick-off... Kick off! http://www.dw.com/en/program/kick-off...