At Wednesday's game against Chelsea, Brentford FC will be raising awareness of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training.

A heart-shaped ‘CPQR code’ will feature prominently on the front of the players' shirts for the match to encourage millions watching around the world to take two minutes to learn the basics of CPR.

As part of this year’s Restart a Heart campaign, Resuscitation Council UK and Pablo London created the heart-shaped 'CPQR code', which aims to increase survival rates by expanding the number of people who know the basic principles of CPR and defibrillation.

It is a heart-shaped QR code that directs people to a short and simple video on how to do CPR and save a life. Scan it. Learn it. Save a life.

The code will also feature on the screens around the Gtech Community Stadium, on the Club’s digital platforms and on the cover of the matchday programme. CPR demonstrations will also take place around the stadium on the night.

In addition to this, Brentford First Team players Mads Roerslev and Keane Lewis-Potter are featured in an instructional video that will be published on social media.

This forms part of the Club’s new partnership, The Heart of West London, with a number of leading charities to improve heart health in the local community. Together, they will use the power of sport and our collective voice to change the game for cardiac health in West London.

The Heart of West London is made up of Brentford FC, Brentford FC Community Sports Trust, Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals Charity, Cardiac Risk in the Young, Resuscitation Council UK, Pablo London and A-K-A Day.

There are more than 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in the UK every year, and every minute without CPR and defibrillation reduces the chance of survival by ten per cent. Recent research carried out by OnePoll found that 74 per cent of people have learned how to perform CPR, but only 44 per cent feel confident in performing it if someone was in a life-threatening situation. 

The Club have also announced that the new training facility, to be opened later in the year, will be named the Robert Rowan Performance Centre, after the Bees' former technical director, who suffered a fatal cardiomyopathy episode in the early hours of Monday 12 November 2018, aged just 28.

Jon Varney, Chief Executive of Brentford FC said: “Cardiac health is an issue that is very important to us and to our local community. By putting the heart-shaped ‘CPQR code’ front and centre on our shirts for this match, we are able to use our platform to help teach the basics of CPR.

"We are urging our fans and those watching to take two minutes to learn the basic skills that could be the difference between a friend or family member surviving a cardiac arrest.”

Dr James Cant, Chief Executive of Resuscitation Council UK, added: “We are excited to be partnering with Brentford FC. Our aim is to save as many lives as possible through education, training and working in collaboration, to raise vital awareness of cardiac arrest and heart disease.”