Storms, sponsors, club actions and more
Round-up #37
Hello again,
It’s been over a month since the last round-up, with a great guest post in-between, so there’s a fair amount of news and developments here to be going on with. Dip in and dip out of this post, or devour as a whole, whatever works for you! Hopefully you’ll find some insights and inspiration to act or approach things differently.
Quick links to sections: Storms, football needs our planet, club actions, fossil fuel sponsors, UEFA plans?, more news and insights, listen up, and awards and events.
Fran
Storms: Central Europe
"providing help is not a colour. I am observing how the Fans organize themselves beyond divisions and help each other in the fight against the effects of the flood. I have always been and will be with the Fans, which is why I decided to donate". Footballer, Lukas Podolski who now plays for Ekstraklasa league club ,Górnik Zabrze, in the Czech Republic.
“I encourage other associations and clubs to join the aid campaign. We often compete in sports arenas, but now we should be one team. I believe that the solidarity of the entire sports community in our country can make a difference" Cezary Kulesza, The President of the Polish Football Association
“Today, football is no longer the most important thing. This is a difficult moment for all of us and we must unite in the face of this catastrophe." say Ekstraklasa side Śląsk Wrocław in a statement encouraging donations.
Storm Boris hit many countries in Central Europe. At least 24 people were killed and the extensive damage led the European Commission to announce €10bn of funding for affected countries. Experts say the storm was made twice as likely by climate change and it “underscores the need for further enhancements to account for climate change in enacting flood defences at scale, and improving risk communication and emergency response plans”.
Many matches across several countries and all tiers of football were postponed. Impacts and responses were highly varied. These included:
In Poland
Cracovia, currently in second place in the top tier, played behind closed doors due to flooding making it unsafe for fans to attend.
The KS Polonia Nysa team helped remove the effects of the flood locally.
The Śląsk Wrocław stadium car park was made available as a shelter, and a delegation from the club joined in local response efforts.
Legia Warszawa academy players helped with the response. The club also accepted fan donations at their stadium.
The club and fans of Pogoń Szczecin, based in the North of the country, joined response efforts saying “We are not indifferent to the events in the south”.
Zagłębie Lubin offered fans a match ticket voucher if they support the collection for flood victims.
FKS Stal Mielec, GKS Katowice, Piast Gliwice and Widzew Łódź, were among clubs also making and supporting donations in innovative ways.
In the Czech Republic
The stadium of Włókniarz Kietrz was flooded as was Slovacko’s training ground.
Baník Ostrava shared video of their rain-affected training ground saying “There is really no football in Ostrava today. The entire region has far more serious concerns”.
Górnik Zabrze and SK Sigma Olomouc were among clubs also making and supporting donations in innovative ways.
Storm Boris elsewhere in Europe
Several games were postponed in the Austrian Bundesliga. Rapid Vienna collected donations and also auctioning match-worn shirts to help flood victims, under the motto "Together. Help. Donate.".
In Romania, playing in crazy conditions, there was a last-minute winner in added-on-time in this game.
Atalanta fans in Italy faced flooding outside their ground following their evening game against Como.
Storms: Elsewhere
In the UK, the flooding of AFC Wimbledon’s ground had widespread coverage, and as I write this I see AFC Telford United’s ground has also flooded. Fans from a wide range of clubs have provided donations to an AFC Wimbledon fundraiser.
Responses to AFC Wimbledon’s flooding came from: Fair Game, Football For Future, Fossil Free Football, the Cool Down Network, and this newsletter.
These events come shortly after the UK Government created a new taskforce on flood resilience. It’s not clear if the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has a seat at the table to lead on sports perspectives.
At the start of September, Typhoon Yagi swept across Southeast Asia causing around 800 fatalities and damage estimated at over $15.8bn. The above images of Chiangrai United and Chiangrai province are courtesy of All Things Thai Football. Elsewhere the friendly match between Thailand and Russia, due to be played in Vietnam, was cancelled. Further information of the impacts on football in the region are hard to come by, and I’d welcome more if any readers have any to share.
Storms: Some Questions
If a pitch is playable but the weather makes it unsafe for fans to attend, should a game go ahead (as happened in Czech Republic last week)? If extreme weather affects clubs and communities in a wide area, should a whole league be paused (as happened in Brazil earlier this year)? Should football stadiums be commandeered by Governments as response centres to disasters (as NFL stadiums will be in the US)? Should football matches be played at different times of the year to what they are now (as the CEO of FA of Wales has considered)? What are the impacts on grassroots football? What are the roles of public bodies, governing bodies, clubs and fans in preparing for, and responding to, extreme weather events?
These are just some of the questions that come to mind after recent extreme weather events, but looking around for information in the public domain you’ll find an absence of communication, thinking and planning.
The quick, creative, and generous responses of clubs, fans and players to these recent extreme weather events are to be strongly welcomed. But they are also reactive and unsustainable as extreme weather events become more severe and frequent.
It may be that this is partly a communication issue, there may be planning in place and better awareness of that is needed. But the ad-hoc responses suggest there is a big gap where more strategic planning for these extreme weather events is needed.
Will these recent floods be a spur to more, urgent, and co-ordinated planning, action and communication?
Football Needs Our Planet
A great video by Heard Organisation in collaboration with This Fan Girl, Cool Down Network & Pledgeball. See the Football Needs Our Planet website for more.
Club actions
FC Bayern will have their first electric team coach in the 2025/26 season. A charging park at their stadium will also service up to 500 electric buses and trucks daily. Elsewhere, Bayern fans have protested about too many games.
Bohemian FC have launched Spark Skills! Classes teaching “practical climate action skills, from bike mechanics to solar energy and home energy efficiency”.
Brentford FC have partnered to offer 20% off rail travel to the away match at Manchester United to help cut CO2. Elsewhere, their players travelled by train to their Manchester City game. Separately, fans are organising rides to games
Bridlington Town FC, hope that the installation of solar panels could help cut ticket prices for fans.
Brighton FC have launched a new collaboration to reuse materials from misprinted jerseys to manufacture new products.
Bristol City Women have won the 2023/24 Pledgeball League.
Grêmio FBPA returned to their stadium, Arena Do Gremio, after 4 months away due to the damage caused by the historic floods in the South of Brazil. The stadium is operating at a reduced capacity.
Lincoln City FC report that their new bike shelter is having a statistical impact on their stadium carbon footprint. Separately, the club has entered into a partnership to help drive the club’s sustainability and innovation strategy.
Liverpool FC won an ESG Programme of the Year at the Global Sustainability & ESG Awards 2024.
Motherwell FC have a partnership to encourage cycling to their ground, which includes free bike hire and a led ride on quiet roads.
Northampton Town FC’s next fan forum will help shape their club’s sustainability efforts.
Portsmouth FC have extended their partnership with a local bus company which will include incentives for fans to travel by bus.
The train taking the Southend FC team to Flyde broke down, leading the game to be postponed.
FC St.Pauli have published details on their carbon footprint.
South West Saints FC new kit features Football For Future as part of a shared commitment to making a positive environment impact.
Stoke City FC have just held an Environment and Sustainability Fan Assembly.
Sunderland AFC has reinforced its commitment to becoming energy-sufficient from renewable sources by 2028 and achieving net zero by 2040.
Sutton United FC have announced a range of initiatives including: an offer of a discount with a reusable cup; membership of a shared electric cargo bike scheme; and availability of a public EV charger.
Wolves FC have provided several updates on a wide range of sustainability work including fan travel, surplus kit redistribution, a fan focus group, and hedgehogs!
Community Sports Trusts in action included: the Manchester United Foundation, Watford CSE Trust, and the SPFL Trust
Have I missed anything? Or do you have something coming up? Feel free to ping me a line at any time with details of what’s going on.
Fossil Fuel Sponsors
Former Australian national football team captain, Craig Foster, says its time to ask “uncomfortable questions” regarding sponsors who threaten the future of sport. His statement comes as a widely-covered new report from the New Weather Institute identifies £4bn of sponsorship from fossil fuel companies in sport, with football having the most partnerships. Commenting on the report SportsPro Media says that “sport could make a major contribution to climate action if it can stop promoting major polluters”.
UEFA plans?
A senior European Club Association representative told a conference that UEFA is giving serious thought to making its sustainability requirements mandatory “which translates to the fact that if the clubs do not meet the benchmarks they will not be eligible for the ‘UEFA License’ and will not be allowed to participate in the European competitions.”
This would be an important and welcome development. It also leads to further questions: Do the mandatory requirements themselves go far enough (for instance, should they also require targets at least in line with UEFA’s own)? Who is being consulted on UEFA’s plans? And when can we expect to hear more? If anyone has any more insights on these plans, please do share!
More news and insights
The Economist looks at why Sport is getting hotter, harder and deadlier. It says that “seemingly small variations in temperature make a huge difference to athletes’ performance” and asks whether the model of big sporting events can remain viable. Similarly, The Scotsman has a column on Why climate change is an 'existential threat to sport'.
SportsPro Media looks at Why sport must invest in sustainability now to prepare for its future and says sustainability needs to be higher up on the list of organisations priorities, and it can be an opportunity not a hindrance.
Nature-owned journal Humanities and Social Sciences Communications looks at the Influence of green practices on user loyalty in sport clubs and says “Green practices need to be part and parcel of a set of business strategies that helps the sports organisation to improve the efficiency and quality of the organisation”.
“Sustainability risk is here now in sports sponsorships, and it will increase over time” says writers from a US law firm in a piece for the Sports Business Journal where they set out their views on the actions needed in response. Elsewhere UK law firm Linklaters sets out their views on what sports organisations need to do to enhance their ESG profile.
Looking at the issues from another angle, an ISPO article: Sustainability sells: the opportunities of the green revolution
Fly another day by Josimar Football looks in-depth at the private jet flights by the FIFA President and how these are disregarding Fifa’s own commitment to fight climate change.
Elite football is built from the grassroots up: executives must take the climate threat seriously by Peter Crisp of Fossil Free Football for the Cool Down Network
The Birmingham County Football Association programme ‘Save Today, Play Tomorrow’ has: signed up for Sports for Nature Framework; partnered to curb single-use plastics; and partnered on encouraging more sustainable travel.
Player safety
Athletes are workers – they need protection from the heat says Manal Azzi writing for the global footballers body, FIFPRO.
Fossil Free Football on Manchester City’s Rodri, his injury, and the need for reform of the football calendar.
Around the world
Communities in Mexico have sounded alarm over environmental threats posed by 2026 FIFA World Cup.
In Nigeria, Ekopages organised a one-day ‘Play For the Planet’ Tournament to raise awareness about environmental sustainability. Does this event, and the Climate Cup in Leh, suggest the start of a trend towards climate awareness football tournaments?
What is the sustainability of the Bundesliga? looks at the state of play, two years after club sustainability licensing was introduced.
"Football is the most popular sport, but also the most polluting" saysAntoine Miche of Football Écologie France, who has just been interviewed by L’Equipe and also by Ecolosport.
The first event of the Planet Ball project, co-funded by the EU took place with a focus on reimagining a more sustainable future for sports and football.
Stadia
The Johan Cruijff ArenA hosted the first Dutch national team match on 100% green electricity.
Wembley Stadium, owned by the Football Association, is introducing a sustainability rider that will provide advice and guidance for all organisations, promoters and touring artists that host events there.
The Monterrey Rayados FC stadium, which will host World Cup 2026 matches, has become the first in Latin America to achieve ‘LEED Gold Certification in Operation and Maintenance’.
Listen Up
Warming Up: The Planet Can't Afford Sport's Big Event Growth Plan. An Unofficial Partner podcast with sport ecologist Madeleine Orr.
Football's Climate Conversation: The Football Governance Bill and what it means for football’s carbon footprint. A 90min podcast with Pledgeball's Katie Cross and Alex Piper, joined by Football For Future's Barney Weston.
A new season has just started of the 5Thread podcast hosted by Joanna Czutkowa, speaking to experts on sports apparel and sustainability.
Awards and events
Events: The Sport Positive Summit 2024 is on the 8th-9th October in London. The Football Association of Wales is hosting a "Football and a sustainable future" event in mid-October. The Welsh Sports Association has a Sustainability in Sport Conference 2024 in November. The recent World Football Summit: Europe included a session on Greening the Game. and the European Association for Sport Management annual conference included a focus on sustainability. If anyone has more of a read-out from these, please share!
Awards. The BASIS Awards have just taken place. The Sport Positive Awards, coming up shortly, include many from the football world. The European Club Association Awards in October includes a Sustainable Governance Award and an Environmental Sustainability Award. The Sport Business Awards taking place in November includes a Sustainability in Sport Award. Congratulations to all those nominated and good luck for the awards too!
Yes, that was a long one. That will teach me to leave it a month between round-ups!
As ever, comments, corrections, suggestions for content, or clearer and more concise communication are welcome at any time.
Be seeing you.
Fran James (he/him)
Football and Climate Change Newsletter
footballandclimatechange@gmail.com
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