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The emissions behind football’s transfer window
Fly Green Alliance and Sokito explored the environmental impact of football’s transfer window during an engaging webinar on the opening day of COP28.
Attendees hailed from South America, Africa, Australia, Europe and the UK, including the Welsh Football Association and the English FA, as well as NGOs such as Common Goal.
The webinar featured footballer William Troost-Ekong, who plays for Greek Super League club PAOK and the Nigeria national team.
Troost-Ekong featured in the world’s first carbon offset transfer and is a climate ambassador, as shown by his role as Head of Purpose at Sokito, a producer of handcrafted and eco-friendly football boots.
Research commissioned by Fly Green Alliance found that the English Premier League was the top emitting football league.
With a focus on reducing football’s footprint, Sokito and Fly Green Alliance launched the ‘Transfer Green’ campaign to encourage players, clubs football associations and other stakeholders to opt for greener transport options during the transfer window.
"We will work hard to make transfer green a reality.”
“We’re encouraging players and their entourage to understand their travel footprint and look at ways to reduce their impact,” said Liam McSherry, Impact and PR Manager for Sokito.
“It can be as simple as booking an electric vehicle to get to the airport or taking the train to their new club. Small actions with big reach, especially if they share a greener travel choice on social media and tag #transfergreen in their posts.”
Sarah Wilkin, Founder and Chief Executive of Fly Green Alliance, added: “It is great to partner with Sokito on Transfer Green. Sokito is working to support players change their behaviours and FGA is working with clubs and FAs on the planning and industry side so together we make a strong team. We will work hard to make transfer green a reality.”
Image: Ross Parmly on Unsplash