Mercedes-Benz Vans kicks off its annual Vantasy Football tournament

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More than a third of business owners have seen sick days fall as a result of staff playing sports together, new research has revealed.  The research, from Mercedes-Benz Vans, found 35% of business owners said staff are less likely to take days off sick when they play team sports, while 63% encourage staff to play sports together to make them healthier and happier at work.  In addition half (50%) of business owners said team sports initiatives made their employees more productive and 48% felt team spirit among staff was boosted by taking part in sports together.  Last year 149 million working days were lost due to illness or injury, while latest figures show sick leave and absence costs the UK £103bn per year.  It comes as Mercedes-Benz Vans marks the return of Vantasy Football - the UK’s only football tournament for van drivers.  The tournament, hosted by Chris Kamara, brings teams of drivers and colleagues together in a bid to highlight the benefits of team sport to businesses and employees.  Held at the England team’s training ground St George’s Park in Staffordshire, the tournament sees teams from a cross-section of UK businesses battle it out to be crowned Vantasy Football champions and take home the prestigious Mercedes-Benz Vans Vantasy Football cup.

Transcript

00:00Before the tournament saw the Vancy football that they went to, it was disconnected.

00:17It's a lonely job on the road, no one to speak to really.

00:21But on top of that as well, we did have a lot of absence.

00:24Being in a team which this is what helped last year,

00:27and obviously organising our own football team as well, went a long way for individuals as well.

00:32They feel part of the team, they feel wanted, etc.

00:36With absence, that's gone down considerably.

00:39It's about 17% from this time last year, which is unbelievable.

00:43It's about camaraderie really, because they do have the football team,

00:47they train once a week, etc. together, and they come from all over the country.

00:51It's worked wonders for morale.

00:57Oh, well done!

01:00We are at St George Park, which is the home of English football.

01:03It's been around for 13 years.

01:04It's a facility that brings teams together and encourages people to stay connected through sport.

01:09We're in the best facility in the UK for football, and having an amazing time, really, more than anything.

01:14I've actually only been with Ryborg for six months, so I'm actually meeting my own team, which is fantastic.

01:20As an industrial place where I shouldn't, it did bring me closer to the team.

01:24Throughout the years in my football career, that team spirit got us together, and we had a bond and a laugh.

01:36And that's exactly the same for businesses.

01:40When corporations pull together small team sports, you definitely start to see a growth.

01:45You start to see people feel more connected.

01:47There's that connection beyond the stressful times that they have.

01:49I think when it comes to the sick days and everything, everybody stays healthier through sports, right?

01:52So it's something that, yeah, definitely we've seen.

01:55It's made a big difference in what we do, what we do achieve.

01:59But there's no doubt in my mind, this is one of them big things, you know, that's brought everybody together.

02:04They want to work, you know, they want to come to work, because you have got that camaraderie.

02:08But it's also about the patience that they're taking it out to.

02:11They understand now, it is a job that they want to do, they need to do.

02:15But all this, what we're doing here today, does bring them together for that.

02:19Hey!

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