This New Tool Will Help Sports Teams Cut Their Carbon Footprint

Sports teams around the world are backing a first of its kind playbook to help the industry measure its carbon footprint. The Carbon Methodology and Calculator for Sport, launched by sustainability and social impact consultancy Think Beyond, aims to create a consistent standard by which teams can measure emissions and make inroads towards climate action.  

Thirty-five organisations, including World Athletics, Liverpool FC, and LIV Golf have already adopted the approach. The playbook’s calculator measures the environmental footprint of everything from fan travel to merchandise. “If you claim the economic impact, then you have to account for the environmental footprint of it,” Susie Tomson, senior partner at Think Beyond, told TIME.

Until now, the industry has lacked a standard, sector-wide approach to measuring its climate impact. The playbook’s methodology aligns with the most widely used method for measuring emissions, known as the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, as well as the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change’s Sports for Climate Action Framework, and the Science Based Targets initiative—but it has translated the frameworks into user-friendly, sports-specific terms. 

“We wanted to make sure that we’re aligned to Greenhouse Gas Protocol, but we’re talking sport language,” says Tomson. 

Once teams plug in their data, a dashboard shows emissions by category, and will help them track changes year over year. Teams can also break their year down into different footprints, to compare the climate impact of various events throughout the season. 

The playbook is part of a wider industry effort to go green. Many sports organizations have pledged to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2040 under the U.N. Sports for Climate Action Framework. The 2024 Super Bowl and the Paris Olympics were both powered entirely by renewable energy. 

But challenges remain. A 2020 estimate found that the global sports industry is responsible for approximately 350 million tonnes of CO2. One study by Scientists for Global Responsibility found that the carbon emissions from the FIFA World Cup alone is equivalent to that of between 31,500 and 51,500 cars driving for one year. 

At the same time, the industry is also grappling with how to keep games going in the face of climate change. A 2022 study found that half of the former Winter Olympic host cities could be unable to sponsor winter games by 2050 due to melting snow and ice. And in many parts of the world, the impacts of climate change are already impacting events—the U.S. Tennis Association introduced an extreme heat policy after the 2018 U.S. Open where players faced off in 100 degree temperatures at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City. Meanwhile NFL players are swapping out their traditional uniforms for ones in heat reflecting colors.

Think Beyond plans to publish an annual State of Sport Carbon Report, which will show where organizations are successfully reducing emissions, and where growth remains. Tomson hopes that the calculator can be used across the industry—from the Olympics to amateur teams. “The more people who use it, the better traction we’re going to get,” she says. “The more groundswell [of people], all talking the same language, measuring the same thing.”