Top clubs ‘must do more to help kick out climate change’

With the football season reaching an exciting climax in the next month, few fans probably realise the game’s effect on climate change.

Midlands environment expert Ron Fox said research by BBC Sport has found worrying evidence, particularly by Premier League clubs, of flying short distances to matches rather than travelling by road or rail.

A study of 100 games played in the UK involving Premier League teams between January 19 and March 19 this year found evidence of 81 individual short-haul domestic flights to and from 100 matches, with some journeys as short as 27 minutes and the average being 42 minutes.

Flights, particularly short-haul, produce greenhouse gases – mainly carbon dioxide (CO2) – from burning fuel which contribute to global warming.

But Ron, of Noreus Ltd, said another worrying statistic was that the study showed for the first time, a significant number of ‘positioning’ flights – where near-empty planes are flown to convenient airports, sometimes across the UK, in order to then transport players and staff to fixtures.

He said ‘positioning’ flights are where the plane is getting into position to pick up its private charter passengers. They are called by the aviation industry “empty leg” flights – as there are no travellers on board and therefore qualify as ‘ghost’ flights, a term increasingly being used to describe any flight with fewer than 10 per cent passengers on board.

It also showed 37 of the 81 player flights had a flight marked as ‘positioning’ beforehand with the longest ‘positioning’ flight was 84 minutes; the shortest just 17 minutes and the average being 42 minutes

In reply The Premier League told BBC Sport that in the two-month period of the research, there were more than 74,000 domestic flights in the UK, putting the 81 Premier League club flights at less than 0.1 per cent of that total.

But it did say it “recognises the need to take action on climate change and is committed to reducing its overall climate impact”. It said clubs have introduced more sustainable fan travel initiatives, are using more renewable energy and are involved in conservation projects.

It added that the biggest emissions are generated from stadiums on matchdays and fan travel – which is the sport’s biggest climate footprint.

The Premier League has signed up to the UN Sport for Climate Action Framework and as a result is tasked with reaching net zero by 2040. That was in November 2021, but it is yet to confirm its plans.

“A first and easy step should be to return to using modern coaches on these short journeys rather than planes,” said Ron, of Noreus Ltd on the University of Keele Science Innovation Park.

“But I think the Premier League and top clubs should set an example by doing more to go green, especially as the latest UN report says we have only a few years left to act to avoid the worst of the climate crisis,”

If you want any advice on green energy solutions for your sports club contact Ron on 0845 474 6641.