Brentford Football Club publishes first Sustainability Report

Brentford’s total greenhouse gas emissions totalled 8,765 tCO2e for the 2023-24 season, according to its report.

Earlier this year, UEFA launched its Carbon Calculator with Brentford in attendance and presenting at the launch. Since then, the club has used the tool to calculate its own emissions from the 2023-24 season.

The club found that 90% of its emissions came from three main sources: the gas and electricity used, goods and services, and fan travel. Some 527 tCO2e was attributed to Scope 1 emissions, 705 tCO2e to Scope 2 emissions and 7,533 were Scope 3.

Taking action

In response, Brentford began purchasing gas and electricity from certified renewable sources. Solar panels are also located on the roof of Gtech Community Stadium. An energy reduction plan has helped to identify the main sources of energy use with initiatives developed to reduce them. Elsewhere, the club has calculated the impact of food products purchased and communicated this to fans.

Last month, Brentford partnered with Trainline’s I Came by Train campaign, which offers fans discounted rail travel for away matches.

Brentford’s approach to sustainability, both environmental and social, has been based around five pillars: governance, climate, circularity, nature and biodiversity, and engagement.

As part of Brentford’s sustainability journey, the club has employed a Sustainability Manager in the form of James Beale and established a sustainability advisory board, which reports directly to Brentford’s board of directors. Beale is also co-chair of the Premier League’s Sustainability Working Group.

In terms of circularity and waste, the club generated 419 tonnes of waste during the 2023-24 season. To help reduce the level of waste, Brentford announced in November 2021 that there would be a two-year cycle for its home kit. This continued into 2023, as the policy has been popular with fans. Refillable water bottles have been given to staff members, and the club has been looking into how it procures items.

The club has also developed a Nature Strategy, which outlines how nature can be improved on its sites as well as being considered in the decision-making process. The plans to enhance nature started with the launch of the Gtech Community Garden at the beginning of the current season, and collaboration with local organisations to improve nature elsewhere.

Perhaps most importantly for a club with a platform is the engagement with fans. Brentford has a fan sustainability working group with representation from the official supporters’ trust, Bees United, the Brentford Independent Association of Supporters (BIAS), and the Sustaina-Bees – a group of fans with concern for the environmental crisis.

Last season, Brentford developed a fan survey on sustainability and supported fan-organised cycle rides to selected games. The club will continue to work with other organisations in the football and sporting industries to drive climate action, and has hosted workshops for official club partners on sustainability.

“This report sets out the way we are approaching this issue, as well as some of the progress we’ve made to date. As this is our first report, we know it is just the beginning,” Beale told Global Sustainable Sport.

“Last season we started to make steps towards accounting for our use of greenhouse gas emissions using the UEFA Carbon Calculator Tool and calculating our fan travel. The tool has helped us determine where we can focus our attention going forward and where we need to find solutions. We have also established a robust governance structure where we’re working with different groups to inform our sustainability work. We’ve also taken steps to enhance the nature around us, recently creating the Gtech Community Garden for our supporters and locals to visit.

“We’re committed to continuing this work with transparency and accountability as we move forward.”

Image: AndyScott, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons