Sportswash is always an own goal
Tobacco companies once exploited sport to promote smoking.
Merriam-Webster's dictionary has added the term 'greenwashing' to its lexicon. It describes the act of making a product or activity appear to be more environmentally friendly than it really is.
The FIFA World Cup in Qatar is taking place in 50 days. It's being billed as the first 'carbon neutral' tournament. The main sponsors are Qatar Energy, Qatar Airways and Hyundai. Qatar energy is the operator of the North Dome gas field. North dome is a vast gas reserve that stretches from Qatar to Iran.
Report by Badvertising and Rapid Transition Alliance found 258 high-carbon sponsorship deals across 13 different sports. The most polluted sport was football. BadAdvertising launched the Bad Sport Awards 2022 to call out big polluters and sports organisations that ally with them. This year's overall winner was the Men's FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
It sickens me to see the beauty of sport corrupted and cheapened by brands whose business models are at odds with the interests of all sports fans.
Manchester City F.C.’s water bottle for air miles recycling exchange scheme took the top prize for the ‘Own Goal” award. The “Skating on Thin Ice“ award was won by the NHL's Edmonton Oilers team, who continue to run the Oilfield Network for businesses and suppliers active in the Canadian fossil fuel industry.
Sport has a unique ability to reach billions worldwide and its clubs and tournaments have values, stories and reputational legacies. Sport also offers advertisers and sponsors the benefit of being associated with healthy activity. The positive emotional connotations associated. with the spectacle of sport are co-opted by companies with chequered pasts through advertising and commercial partnerships.
Beijing Winter Olympics used artificial snow. The 2021 Winter Games will be held in China. Sports have a duty to protect the athletes, the fans and the environments that enable them to play. World Cup is set to contribute to an unlivable climate. It's one of the reasons why cities bid to host mega events.
Sportswash is always an own goal. Sport must stop giving a platform to companies that are disproportionately responsible for driving the climate crisis and polluting our air, land, and sea. The National Portrait Gallery and the Scottish Ballet turned their backs on fossil fuel sponsors after powerful grassroots campaigns. Anna Jonsson of New Weather Sweden is a Bad Sports Award judge.
Freddie Daley is the founder of Cool Down, a network of sports organisations calling for climate action in and through sport.
