The American Heart Association and National Football League have unveiled the 2025 Nation of Lifesavers Player Ambassador Class, consisting of 30 current NFL players dedicated to promoting CPR education on World Restart a Heart Day. The ambassadors will amplify public service announcements, social media content, and local community education events to support the Association's call to action for people to learn this lifesaving skill. Damar Hamlin, safety for the Buffalo Bills who experienced his own cardiac emergency during a 2023 game, serves as National Ambassador for the initiative while also representing his team.
"When someone has a sudden cardiac arrest, immediate CPR can mean the difference between life and death," said Nancy Brown, chief executive officer of the American Heart Association. "Thanks to the leadership of the NFL and its players, including Damar Hamlin, millions of people now understand just how critical it is to be prepared to act." The statistics underscore the urgency of this initiative. According to the American Heart Association, over half of sudden cardiac arrest victims outside hospitals don't receive immediate CPR, leading to a 90% fatality rate. Yet learning Hands-Only CPR takes just 90 seconds and can double or triple survival chances. The Association provides resources at https://www.heart.org/HandsOnlyCPR to help people learn this critical skill.
This marks the second annual ambassador class, with the initiative supporting the Association's Nation of Lifesavers movement that launched following Hamlin's cardiac arrest during Monday Night Football. The collaboration represents the Association's most recent demonstration of its commitment to CPR education and supports its goal to double survival rates of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest by 2030. The NFL Foundation provides CPR grants to each team to increase CPR and AED access in communities. Since 2023, these annual grants have funded Hands-Only CPR training, Heartsaver CPR AED credentialing, placement of CPR in Schools Kits and CPR Youth Sports Kits. More than half of NFL teams have hosted American Heart Association trainings, educating players, staff, youth coaches, and fan families on Hands-Only CPR.
As part of NFL PLAY 60 youth health efforts, Hands-Only CPR education has become a key component within the Kids Heart Challenge and American Heart Challenge programs in schools. Students and families learn to recognize cardiac emergencies, call 911, and perform chest compressions. The American Heart Association also serves as a founding member of the Smart Heart Sports Coalition established by the NFL, advocating for evidence-based policies to prevent fatal cardiac outcomes among high school students. With nearly three out of four cardiac arrests occurring in homes, the need for widespread CPR knowledge becomes even more critical. The Association emphasizes that if a teen or adult collapses, witnesses should immediately call 911 and begin chest compressions at 100-120 beats per minute. The ongoing partnership between the NFL and American Heart Association continues to build momentum toward creating a nation prepared to respond when cardiac emergencies strike.
