How big is the carbon footprint of football?

The global football sector's carbon footprint is estimated at 64-66 million tonnes of carbon equivalent, a figure comparable to the national emissions of Austria. The analysis identifies sponsorship deals with major polluting corporations as the primary driver, accounting for approximately 75% of the total emissions. Other contributing factors include energy use in stadium construction and operation, fan and team travel, and merchandise.

• The global carbon footprint of the football sector is estimated to be between 64 and 66 million tonnes of carbon equivalent, which is comparable to the total emissions of Austria.
• Sponsorship agreements with corporations that are major polluters are the largest contributor to the sector's emissions, representing 75% of the total.

APA

Parkinson, D. S., & Simms, A. (2025). How big is the carbon footprint of football? Scientists for Global Responsibility. https://www.sgr.org.uk/publications/dirty-tackle-growing-carbon-footprint-football

Chicago

Parkinson, Dr Stuart, and Andrew Simms. How big is the carbon footprint of football? Scientists for Global Responsibility, 2025. https://www.sgr.org.uk/publications/dirty-tackle-growing-carbon-footprint-football.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Parkinson |first1=Dr Stuart |last2=Simms |first2=Andrew |title=How big is the carbon footprint of football? |publisher=Scientists for Global Responsibility |date=1 February 2025 |url=https://www.sgr.org.uk/publications/dirty-tackle-growing-carbon-footprint-football |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{parkinson2025how, author = {Parkinson, Dr Stuart and Simms, Andrew}, title = {{How big is the carbon footprint of football?}}, institution = {Scientists for Global Responsibility}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://www.sgr.org.uk/publications/dirty-tackle-growing-carbon-footprint-football}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }