Would you invite four people you had never met to your wedding?

Well, that's exactly what Ryan George did. The 28-year-old from Cardiff had only spoken to Gerard, Scott, Kesean and Matt while playing football video game Fifa online, but wanted them to be there as he tied the knot.

Living across the UK, Ryan said it was the perfect chance to meet up for the first time and "have a few pints".

He said online friendships were often the "most accessible" and important for mental health.

Mental health charity Mind Cymru said gaming and online friendships could have a positive impact on a person's wellbeing if used responsibly.

Ryan has been gaming since he was 11 years old and the friends met in a "pro club" on Fifa, where strangers can connect and compete together.

Their team is currently 44th in the world but it is not that easy to meet up for a kick about.

Gerard, who could not make the wedding in September as his wife had just had a baby, lives in Belfast, Kesean in London, and Scott and Matt in Cambridgeshire.

They started playing a few times a week, but Ryan said they became a lot closer during the Covid lockdowns, taking their chat outside of games and into group chats and video calls.

They now share the most important parts of each other's lives including the birth of their children, so father-of-two Ryan said it was a "no-brainer to invite the boys", with support from wife Alice.

"We've grown up with the game so I suppose at heart we still think that we are 17, and playing the same game as we were back then," said Ryan.

"Me and the boys aren't really the type to be gaming all the time, we've all got lives outside of Xbox and friends and families so we weren't really looking for friends.

"But it was definitely organic and moving to group chats then became a tool for everyone to speak about other things and get a bit closer."

He said the group were "just talking absolute rubbish most of the time", and gave each other "a bit of stick" about their different football teams.