There’s not long to go until the FIFA World Cup kicks off in the United States, Canada and Mexico in June of next year, and while most eyes will be on the action on the pitch, the environmental impact of the tournament will also be worth tracking.
In July, a study by Scientists for Global Responsibility, the Environmental Defense Fund, Cool Down – the Sport for Climate Action Network, and the New Weather Institute, suggested that the forthcoming World Cup is likely to be the most polluting tournament to date, generating over 9 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2e).
This total, which is close to double the average emissions of the last four World Cups, is largely due to the expanded nature of the tournament (104 matches instead of 64), as well as the travel emissions generated by holding the tournament across three countries. Air travel will be responsible for more than 7.7 million tonnes of emissions.
Allied to this, the study, FIFA’s Climate Blind Spot: The Men’s World Cup in a Warming World, suggested that FIFA‘s choice of sponsors for the event, such as Saudi oil giant Aramco, significantly increases the overall climate impact of the event.
“FIFA must take responsibility for its growing role in the climate crisis,” commented Dr Stuart Parkinson of Scientists for Global Responsibility and lead author of the research.
‘Farcical and absurd’
It’s not the first study to point the finger at FIFA over its climate commitments, with Carbon Market Watch slamming the football organisation’s ‘foul, irresponsible, farcical, and absurd approach to the climate’ in a report last December.
It pointed to the 3.8 million tonnes of emissions generated during the Qatar 2022 World Cup, adding that in the run up to that competition, ‘FIFA even had the brass neck to suggest that this mega sporting event would be carbon neutral’.
Post-Qatar report
In its FIFA World Cup Greenhouse Gas Accounting Report for the Qatar tournament, the organisation noted that the majority of emissions were generated by travel and accommodation, with 78.9% of total emissions generated during the competition itself, 54.9% of which came from air travel.
FIFA added that the tournament was the first-ever to achieve ISO 20121 certification for sustainable event management, with every stadium used achieving sustainable building certification, as well as being 42% more energy efficient than international benchmarks.
According to Carbon Market Watch, however, the World Cup remains a ‘carbon bomb, even by the obscene standards of other mega events’, with the 2026 tournament, not to mention the 2030 and 2034 editions, a ‘worrying sign of what’s to come’.
Sustainability & Human Rights Strategy
FIFA recently published its Sustainability & Human Rights Strategy for the 2026 World Cup, stating that its overarching vision for the tournament is to set new benchmarks in sustainability and human rights while leaving a lasting legacy in each host community.
Its strategy is built around four interlinked pillars – social, environmental, economic, and governance – with the environmental pillar requiring tournament host cities to develop and implement tailored environmental plans around emissions reduction, energy efficiency, responsible resource use, and environmental awareness.
“We are committed to working with all the host cities and World Cup stadiums to meet ambitious sustainability and human rights goals and ensure that the tournament operations are respectful of people and the planet,” commented Heimo Schirgi, FIFA World Cup chief operating officer.
With just a few months to go until the tournament kicks off, interested parties will be watching closely to see whether FIFA delivers on its promises.
Read more: FIFA World Cup 2026 ‘could be the last of its kind’ in North America
