England and Arsenal star Beth Mead opens up on ‘very dark’ mental health battle after losing mother and suffering ACL injury last season

Beth Mead revealed that she had to fight a «very dark» mental health battle after losing her mother and suffering an ACL injury last season.

WHAT HAPPENED? The Arsenal star suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in November 2022, which dashed her hopes of participating in the Women's World Cup the following summer. Unfortunately, the road to recovery was further complicated by the tragic loss of her mother, June, in January, following a courageous battle with ovarian cancer. Mead admitted that the double whammy of the injury and her mother's passing made it difficult for her to find an «escape» to lift her spirits.

WHAT THEY SAID: “In January I lost my Mum and because of the injury I couldn’t play football, which was always my escape, my happy place. Moments when people thought I was fine because of my outgoing personality, were very dark," she told Independent.

«It’s been a tough process to understand. Teammates, people at the club, family and friends who supported me were so important, without them I could have been in a far darker place. I want to help create an environment in which it’s totally normal to address mental health.

“There’s not a perfect way of dealing with it, but if you feel you’re not alone it helps so much. We need to normalise mental health and in doing so that would go a long way.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Despite these challenges, Mead has taken on a significant role in leading Common Goal's initiative called „Create the Space.“ She has been joined by other football players, including Ben Chilwell, Molly Bartrip, Vivianne Miedema, Marvin Sordell, Naomi Girma, Sergio Oliveira, Alex Remirand, and more. This campaign is focused on addressing the deepening mental health crisis in football and