England v Ghana: Back of the Net (Zero)?

The World Cup, with hydration breaks and air-conditioned stadiums, has already shown how climate change is affecting football and forcing it to adapt.

How football is affecting the climate, however, is a different matter.

Ahead of England’s fixture vs Ghana, Professor Chris Hilson, Director of the Centre for Climate and Justice at the University of Reading, explores how what action the football leagues in each country are taking on climate change, and what action is being taken to mitigate those impacts in Ghana and England.

For interviews, contact the University of Reading Press Office on 0118 378 5757 or pressoffice@reading.ac.uk.

Professor Chris Hilson said: “In England, the Football Association (FA) has said they are ‘working towards’ reducing their own emissions as an organisation by 50% by 2030. They are committed to reaching net zero by 2040, pledging over £35m to deliver that ambition. 

“But that covers only its own operations including venues like Wembley. For clubs, climate and sustainability policy rests with the leagues like the Premier League which represents clubs in the Premiership. In its policy, the Premier League was aiming was for each club and the Premier League itself to have an environmental sustainability policy in place by the end of the 2024/25 season. 

“On climate, the plan was to “work towards a standardised football-wide approach to measuring emissions” and to “support the development of a common framework for action via the Premier League Sustainability Working Group”. The Premier League has now produced its own sustainability policy where it has committed to achieving net zero by 2040. Premiership clubs who have likewise made the same commitment already include Arsenal and Liverpool.

“Supporters also make up a significant proportion of club emissions. There, the Football Supporters' Association (FSA) has partnered with Pledgeball who designed a toolkit to rally fans to do their bit on climate change.

“Ghana has two key football organisations: the Ghana Football Association (GFA) which is the national governing body and the Ghana League Clubs Association (GHALCA) which represents the clubs. 

“There have been calls for the GFA to become a signatory to the 2018 UN Sports for Climate Action Framework which would involve a commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 and to achieve net zero by 2040. However the GFA has yet to take this step.

“GHALCA, with African and German partners, launched a ‘Green Football League’ program in 2024, designed to combat climate change. The idea is that clubs in both the men’s and women’s leagues, who often lack access to sponsorship, can get a revenue boost by taking action to reduce their climate emissions. That might involve the clubs using renewable energy, or encouraging players and fans to use sustainable transport methods to travel to games.

The Real Scoreline

Ahead of this summer’s football, the University of Reading launched The Real Scoreline, which ranks each nation’s vulnerability to climate impacts and their action on climate change, with data visualised through virtual playing cards. Read more and download the cards: The Real Scoreline reveals nations facing climate penalties

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Notes to editors:

Professor Chris Hilson is available for interview. Contact the University of Reading Press Office on 0118 378 5757 or pressoffice@reading.ac.uk.