News article
Sustainability round-up: FIBA, Rugby Football League…
Also in the news: International World Games Association, Royal Ascot and more…
Questions have been raised over the commitment of sport to sustainable practices following recent partnership between major clubs and organisations. German football club Borussia Dortmund recently signed a deal with defence and technology group Rheinmetall. The club’s fans even protested the partnership during the recent loss against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League final.
Elsewhere, golf body the R&A signed a multi-year partnership with private aviation company NetJets. The company will act as The Open’s official private jet provider.
FIBA 3×3 has maintained its International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 20121 certification for its commitment to hosting sustainable events for a second year running. FIBA 3×3 became the first basketball organisation to obtain ISO 20121 recognition in 2022. The FIBA 3×3 World Tour and FIBA 3×3 Asia Cup events were determined to have successfully implemented initiatives aimed at reducing costs, limiting carbon emissions and waste, managing the biodiversity of venues, respecting human rights and achieving a diverse and inclusive workforce.
Paris 2024 will see hockey matches played on the innovative ‘Poligras Paris GT zero’ turf, the world’s first carbon-zero hockey turf. This follows on from the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, which deployed turf that required a 39% reduction in water usage compared to the turf used in Rio four years earlier.
With June 5 marking World Environment Day, the International World Games Association (IWGA) highlighted its commitment to sustainability by celebrating its Sustainability Strategy for the World Games. The new strategy was first introduced in April and was presented at the Annual General Meeting on May 1. The IWGA will work with the local organising committee of the World Games in Chengdu, China in 2025 to implement initiatives from the strategy. The specific World Games 2025 Sustainability Plan will be published in August.
Ahead of the general election in the UK, the Rugby Football League (RFL) has written to party leaders calling for support for its National Facilities Strategy. The programme is aiming to utilise government funding to invest in rugby league clubs and foundations across communities. Local clubs are facing issues including rising costs, continued recovery after COVID-19 and more.
Sodexo Live!, which provides catering and hospitality services for the Royal Ascot horse racing event at Ascot Racecourse, will build on its social impact commitment by including 40 student chefs from colleges. Additionally, Sodexo Live! has partnered with Full Circle Farms, which sees food waste transformed into fertiliser. The Village Enclosure at Royal Ascot will also return with plant-based food and Neutro, a net zero dining concept.
English football club Leyton Orient has brought green technology specialists Ampergia on board as its official sustainability partner. Ampergia will install solar panels at the club’s Gaughan Group Stadium. Not only will the solar installation eventually save money in terms of energy bills, but it will also decrease Leyton Orient’s carbon footprint.
The International Floorball Federation (IFF) has introduced a database of sustainable actions for sports event organisers and organisations to adopt. Created by the GAMES Project, an Erasmus+ funded initiative that explores ways sport can decarbonise, the database includes ways to reduce environmental impact around energy, food and beverage, transport, and waste.
Technology forged in one industry can impact many others, with British band Coldplay demonstrating this through their ambition to tour sustainably. Initiatives implemented across fan travel, food and beverage, and waste, can also inspire similar projects in sport. Coldplay announced a 59% reduction in CO2e emissions compared to their previous stadium tour in 2016-17. Production utilised show batteries, kinetic dance floors, water refill stations, low-carbon food and beverage options, while fans were inspired to travel by public transport, cycling or walking to reduce their own impact. Additionally, Coldplay partnered with an organisation to plant trees for everyone that purchased a ticket, meaning seven million trees have been planted.