Waste in Sport

On a day when we go to a sports stadium to watch our favourite teams or players perform, not many of us think about waste (unless your shiny new striker is failing to deliver), but should we? As the number of fans who flock to stadiums grows, so does the level of waste, from the plethora of plastic cups and beer cans to the ubiquitous flags that remain after the game. How big a worry is this, you may wonder? Well, quite significant when we check the stats. In the Premier League for instance, it is reported that each game generates about 750,000 plastic bottles and seven tonnes of waste. When we factor in the 380 games that take place in each Premier League season, the numbers start to look absurd. It appears the FA are aware of this and are now looking to combat this crisis but what should they be looking to do? One way could be implementing what the NFL did a few years ago in the 2015 Super Bowl and make it a communal effort to clear all the garbage that remains after the game, even getting the little ones involved by recycling some of the used flags for art and crafts in school. As invested as we are in our sports teams, we should be even more invested in the wellbeing of the planet where sport resides.

WASTE IN

This article takes a look at just how detrimental some aspects of sports can be on the environment as well as ways leading organisations could seek to negate these effects

One source of waste that is within the control of sports teams is sports jerseys. The biggest sports organisations such as Los Angeles Lakers, Barcelona and the New York Yankees typically roll out new jerseys for their fans every year, and often, the newer kits are inseparable in design from the ones the year before. Although it’s seemingly easy for clubs to exploit their fans for a few extra millions, perhaps it’s worth holding off production of jerseys every year as they have an adverse effect on the environment. The main fabric used in producing jerseys is polyester which poses many benefits for the consumer (one of which being its non-wrinkle quality) but not for our planet. Polyester is one of the worst fabrics for production environment-wise as it’s made from petroleum, which means it’s particularly hard to degrade and, with the ease in which fans churn over old kits for new ones every year, it is no surprise this particular concern is now being raised more frequently. Owing to the evermore capitalistic world we live in, perhaps hoping for clubs to cut down on a major source of revenue in exchange for a cleaner environment may seem a far cry but it is one worth making. It’s not all doom and gloom though, many sports teams are now starting to take more proactive actions in limiting waste whether it is through enforcing stricter regulations on wastage within the arenas or ensuring kit producers use more biodegradable fabrics to make jerseys. These are admirable steps but none is more important than raising as much awareness as possible amongst fans and the general public as I hope this article has just done. “In the Premier League for instance, it is reported that each game generates about 750,000 plastic bottles and seven tonnes of waste” “As invested as we are in our sports teams, we should be even more invested in the wellbeing of the planet where sport resides”

Ben Ofungwu Illustration & Page Design by Natasha Phang-Lee