Table 1.

FFIT development, evaluation and scale-up mapped onto the ‘5Ps’ (Place, People & Process, Provisions, Principles) and Steps 1–4 of the PRACTIS guide.

	Implementation Phase 1: Program Development, Pilot Deliveries & Pilot Feasibility Trial	Implementation Phase 2: FFIT RCT and Long-Term Follow-Up	Implementation Phase 3: Routine FFIT Deliveries
Target outcome	Weight loss, physical activity (PA), diet	As for Phase 1+ behavior change maintenance	As for Phase 2
Population	Men (35–65 yr, BMI ≥27 kg/m2)	Men (35–65 yr, BMI ≥28 kg/m2)	As for Phase 2
Setting	Professional football clubs in Scotland	As for Phase 1	As for Phases 1 & 2
Step 1: Characterize implementation setting parameters	Place:	Place:	Place:
	In-stadia facilities of 11 Scottish Premier League (SPL) clubs.	In-stadia facilities of 12 SPL clubs + club most recently relegated from SPL.	In-stadia facilities of 36/42 Scottish Premier Football League (SPFL) clubs & professional football clubs in England.
	People & Process:	People & Process:	People& Process:
	12-week intervention targeting men who are overweight/obese. Aimed to recruit~30 men for program delivery facilitated by two club coaches (participant: coach ratio ~15:1).	As for Phase 1 + ‘Light touch’ maintenance (emails, invite to reunion).	As for Phase 1 (i.e., ‘Light touch’ maintenance not continued).
	Community coaches from the clubs trained by research team over 2 days (a few clubs engaged external male health trainers to work alongside community coaches).	As for Phase 1 (except coaches from several clubs had experience of delivering FFIT in pilot phase).	Community coaches from the clubs trained by SPFL-T over ~2 days.
	Support with any issues during 12-week delivery from research team.	As for Phase 1.	Support with any issues during 12-week delivery from SPFL-T.
Step 1 (contd.)	Recruitment via club with support of research team: club website, leaflet mailings, word of mouth (including emails), newspapers (local and national), other (e.g., adverts in local venues, match day advertising.	Recruitment via club with support of research team: word-of-mouth; local, national & social media; workplaces; direct approaches in-stadia to men at pre-season matches.	Recruitment via: club resources; SPFL-T website & social media; word-of-mouth; local, national & social media; NHS referral.
	Provisions:	Provisions:	Provisions:
	Recruitment flyers; Participant & coach manuals detailing key delivery points week-by-week, with space for men to record progress against goals; Coach training delivered by research team; Research fieldwork team trained to standardized protocols to measure outcomes at baseline, 12 weeks, 6 months and 12 months in two clubs participating in pilot RCT.	As for Phase 1.	SPFL-T website & staff to support FFIT recruitment and deliveries; Social media & recruitment materials (including participant endorsements); Participant & coach manuals (as for Phase 1); Coach training delivered by SPFL-T (using ‘train the trainers’ model and materials) coaches trained to measure outcomes (pre-post) to standardized protocols (refresher training for delivery and measures every 3 years).
	Pedometer to self-monitor daily step count.	As for Phase 1.	Pedometer/own device to self-monitor daily step count.
	Funding from Scottish Government & Football Pools to reimburse clubs/coaches for their time/resource use.	As for Phase 1.	Funding from Scottish Government to reimburse SPFL-T (for training, oversight, audit) & clubs/coaches for their time/resource use Oversight & audit of outcomes by SPFL-T (with input from research team biannually to review outcomes & updates).
Step 1 (contd.)	Principles:	Principles:	Principles:
	Intervention—Gender-sensitized, working with not against dominant cultural constructions of masculinity in relation to health; targets small, cumulative, sustainable changes in daily life to support weight loss, increased physical activity & healthy eating. Develops participant skills in toolkit of BCTs, e.g., goal setting, self-monitoring, problem solving, identifying social support, encouraging participants to select what works for them. Designed to be delivered using club facilities and coaches at relatively low cost.	Intervention—As for Phase 1.	Intervention—As for Phase 1.
	Implementation—Builds on and develops existing structures within clubs; congruence with aims and aspirations of newly-established Scottish Premier League Trust (SPL-T); congruence with public health priorities to address rising obesity, poor diet and physical inactivity.	Implementation—As for Phase 1, building on skills and experience acquired during pilot deliveries of FFIT.	Implementation—As for Phase 1 + uses infra-structure & experience of FFIT & other ‘football in the community’ initiatives in SPFL-T as an overarching organizational structure, supporting community coaches within clubs to deliver health-promoting programs to adults.
Step 2: Identify and engage key stakeholders	Newly established SPL-T; Coaches and clubs within SPL.	As for Phase 1.	SPL-T became SPFL-T in 2013; Coaches & clubs within the SPFL & football clubs elsewhere in the UK.
Step 2 (contd.)	Scottish Government and Football Pools as funders for the deliveries of FFIT.		Scottish Government as funder for ongoing, routine deliveries of FFIT in Scotland.
	Men in mid-life who are overweight.		Men in mid-life who are overweight.
	Advisory group (including academic, funder and SPL representation).		Oversight group from UoG (core FFIT team).
Step 3: Identify contextual barriers and facilitators	Cultural level facilitators (identified through process evaluation in pilot trial): (i) ‘push factors’ (large pool of men who are overweight/physically inactive and want to make changes but not attending other weight management services); (ii) ‘pull factors’ (the ‘draw’ of the club and the popularity of football/ professional sport, and positive association with men’s interests).	Cultural level facilitators (identified through process evaluation in RCT): As for Phase 1.	Cultural level facilitators: As for Phase 1.
	Organizational and provider level facilitators: (i) most clubs have a more or less developed community wing of club, with community coaches; (ii) availability of research team to deliver coach training; (iii) funding to provide materials (FFIT-branded t-shirts, FFIT/club-branded manuals, pedometers) and cover	Organizational and provider level facilitators: (i) most clubs have developed or developing community wing, with community coaches with some experience of delivering FFIT in pilot stages; (ii) availability of research team to deliver coach training; (iii) developing infrastructure within SPL-T to support clubs delivering FFIT in recruitment; (iv)	Organizational and provider level facilitators: (i) availability of gold-standard evidence on effectiveness and cost-effectiveness; (ii) well-developed and expanded infrastructure within SPFL-T to train club coaches to deliver FFIT; (iii) most clubs have an established community wing of club, with community coaches with experience of delivering FFIT; (iv)
Step 3 (contd.)	coach time and room bookings for measurement sessions.	support from FFIT research team in recruitment at pre-season ‘friendly’ games to ensure full recruitment to all available deliveries; (v) skills of club coaches in engaging groups of participants and delivering group-based activities, with increased experience of and confidence in delivering to men in mid-life.	developing reputation of FFIT (‘word-of-mouth’) and club-based/SPFL-T social media to facilitate recruitment to new deliveries; (v) well-established expertise within SPFL-T; (vi) ‘licensing model’ to provide structure for training, oversight, support and administration by SPFL-T; (vii) train the trainers materials, protocols and experience provided by SPFL-T; (viii) periodic meetings between SPFL-T and UoG to review progress, developments, quality assurance and outcomes.
	Cultural barriers: popular messages reinforcing men’s lack of interest in health, and weight loss programs as ‘diets’ and ‘for women’.	As for Phase 1.	As for Phase 1 (potentially decreasing with time).
Step 3 (contd.)	Organizational and provider level barriers: (i) community coaches’ lack of experience in working with target group (overweight men in mid-life); (ii) skepticism about whether FFIT can be delivered in the context and can support intended target outcomes; (iii) lack of experience in clubs of undertaking research, particularly using a randomized design; (iv) competing demands on coach time and club facilities.	Organizational and provider level barriers: (i) competing demands on coach time and club facilities.	Organizational and provider level barriers: (i) lack of fully-developed model for routine scale-up in initial post-trial deliveries, prior to the development of licensing model.
Step 4: Address & assess barriers	Process evaluation: Interviews and discussions with stakeholders (SPL-T, club coaches) provided feedback to guide development of intervention processes and materials. Interviews conducted with coaches, participants, and drop-outs from the program.	Process evaluation: Extensive process evaluation as part of FFIT RCT to identify remaining barriers to implementation, and barriers to change for participating men. Documented recruitment methods, interviews/ focus groups about coach and participant experiences post-program.	Formative evaluation: Additional impact accelerator grant to develop a ‘train the trainer’ model and materials. Work by SPFL-T to ‘rebrand’ FFIT.
	Observations of pilot deliveries across the clubs. Feedback from advisory group.	Observations of program delivery.	Regular quality assurance involves attending some session deliveries.
Step 4 (contd.)	Strategies to address barriers: Training and support for delivery for club coaches, provided by research team. Development of publicity materials in anticipation of positive results from the pilot (‘video’ diary of sessions by BBC journalists, BBC Radio documentary). 5-a-side tournament between participating clubs as awareness raising/media coverage in anticipation of recruiting to full RCT.	Strategies to address barriers: Intensive effort to recruit sufficient men for trial within short period between funding decision and trial start.	Strategies to address barriers: Development of licensing model, including mechanisms to audit pre-post outcomes in routine (post-RCT) deliveries of FFIT, allowing regular feedback to funder on numbers participating, characteristics of participants and outcomes on key measures. Increasing size and capacity of SPFL-T staff to train clubs to deliver with fidelity, oversee and evaluate process and outcomes and for wider communication and advocacy for increased uptake in new clubs. Development of online data collection tool from 2019 to improve quality of data and enhance reporting
	Process/outcome evaluation: Led to minor changes to eligibility criteria (BMI at least 28) and program as a result of formative evaluation.	Process/outcome evaluation: Extended learning about mechanisms and key components for successful delivery.	Process/outcome evaluation: Periodic (biannual) meetings between SPFL-T and UoG to review audit data on routine deliveries.