The importance of policy and the need for mental health interventions and support

The introduction of policies by governing bodies can impact upon players, coaches and match officials alike. These policy initiatives and interventions can be received both positively and negatively by match officials and have also focused upon the mental health and wellbeing of these match officials. This chapter focuses on the impact of policy interventions, alongside the importance of an understanding of mental health for sports match officials and the positive interventions related to mental health that have occurred, despite findings demonstrating that there is still progress required. Furthermore, match officials identified the importance of mentoring and that an absence of appreciation by other stakeholders of the role of the umpire and referee is a particular concern. Finally, this chapter introduces the conceptual model of the factors influencing match official welfare and future outcomes, in order to further understand some of the challenges faced by match officials and to enable a summary of the personal, environmental and societal factors that can influence match official performance.