Football is the most popular sport, globally and in the United Kingdom. However it generates a range of negative environmental impacts, such as climate change, due to an extensive amount of travel involved. The growing contribution of football clubs to the global carbon footprint has been recognised, but never consistently assessed. This study assesses the carbon footprint of the English Premier League (EPL) clubs, using the patterns of their domestic travel in the 2016/2017 season as a proxy for analysis. The study shows that, within the 2016/17 season, the EPL clubs produced circa 1134 tonnes of CO2-eq. as a result of their travel, where transportation accounts for 61% of the carbon footprint. To reduce this carbon footprint, a careful review of the current corporate travel and procurement practices in the EPL clubs is necessary. This is in order to optimise the travel itineraries, prioritise more climate-benign modes of transport and contract budget accommodation providers with the 'green' credentials. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
1.Univ Fed Goias, Fac Sci & Technol, Aparecida Goiania Campus,Rua Mucuri S-N,Area 03, BR-74968755 Aparecida De Goiania, Go, Brazil 2.Bournemouth Univ, Fac Management, Talbot Campus, Poole BH12 5BB, Dorset, England 3.Univ Fed Rio de Janeiro, Alberto Luiz Coimbra Inst Grad Studies & Res Engn, Transportat Engn Program, Predio Ctr Tecnol, Av Horacio Macedo 2030,Bloco H,Sala 106, BR-21949900 Rio De Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
Recommended Citation:
Toffano Pereira, Rodrigo Pinheiro,Filimonau, Viachaslau,Ribeiro, Glaydston Mattos. Score a goal for climate: Assessing the carbon footprint of travel patterns of the English Premier League clubs[J]. JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION,2019-01-01,227:167-177