Case study: Pledgeball

The document details how an Innovation Partnership between Climate Outreach and Pledgeball since 2021 has integrated academic research and expert evaluation into Pledgeball's climate action initiatives. By utilizing a collaboratively developed communications toolkit and M&E support, Pledgeball has refined its approach to engage sports fans through a pledging mechanism, avoiding buzzwords and focusing on community validation. The partnership has helped Pledgeball scale its operations to include 10-20 professional football clubs per season and other sports organizations, while providing Climate Outreach with case studies on the 'ripple effect' of community-led climate engagement.

• The Innovation Partnership between Climate Outreach and Pledgeball, established in 2021, provided the organization with specialist monitoring and evaluation (M&E) support, collaborative knowledge sharing, and a communications toolkit to align their approach with the climate engagement evidence base.
• Pledgeball has expanded its reach from grassroots sports to working with 10-20 professional football clubs each season, as well as the International Biathlon Union, rugby clubs, the Lawn Tennis Association, and UEFA and MasterCard for the Champions League.
• Evidence-based communication strategies adopted by Pledgeball emphasize validating existing community efforts, utilizing local voices and stories, and avoiding climate-related buzzwords to make the messaging more relevant to local communities.
• Engagement through the Pledgeball League has demonstrated a 'ripple effect' where initial requests for clubs to advertise the platform led some venues to independently develop sustainability strategies and implement operational changes, such as installing LED lighting or repressurizing tennis balls.

APA

Climate Outreach (2025). Case study: Pledgeball. https://climateoutreach.org/case-study-pledgeball/

Chicago

Climate Outreach. Case study: Pledgeball. 2025. https://climateoutreach.org/case-study-pledgeball/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Outreach |title=Case study: Pledgeball |date=23 January 2025 |url=https://climateoutreach.org/case-study-pledgeball/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateoutreach2025case, author = {{Climate Outreach}}, title = {{Case study: Pledgeball}}, institution = {Climate Outreach}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://climateoutreach.org/case-study-pledgeball/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }