The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the most climate polluting in its history and a “dramatic step in the wrong direction”, according to a new scientific report.
The 48-team tournament will produce around nine million tons of greenhouse gas emissions, according to the paper – almost double the average for the last four World Cup finals. By comparison, the last edition of the tournament, Qatar 2022, is estimated to have had a footprint of up to 5.25 million tonnes of CO2e.
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The report, written by Dr Stuart Parkinson and Andrew Simms, also highlighted safety concerns over FIFA’s ability to protect players and fans at the tournament, with half (8 out of 16) of the proposed stadiums requiring “immediate environmental intervention” to prevent harm to participants and spectators alike.
The expanded tournament – the first to feature 48 teams, up from 32 in Qatar – the tournament’s sponsor Aramco and the spread of matches over the U.S., Mexico and Canada are viewed as contributors to a potential record high of greenhouse gas emissions.
FIFA’s sponsorship deal with Saudi state-owned oil company, Aramco, could induce an additional 30 million tonnes of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) in 2026 alone, the authors said, due to increased sales and visibility for the fossil fuel company.
“It feels as if FIFA has learned nothing and that it’s got a real climate blind spot,” co-author Simms told The Athletic on Wednesday. “When what you’re talking about is ultimately the loss of an environment and a climate which is fit for human civilisation. We couldn’t be more worried.
“Football has to act alongside every other sector, a society and the economy to do everything in its power to turn things around.”
A reversal of the tournament expansion was suggested by the authors to mitigate climate risks in the future, with the 2030 World Cup already predicted to generate over 6 million tonnes of CO2e.
Samran Ali, from the Environmental Defense Fund, said: “The World Cup unites us around a shared love of the game, but it also carries a heavy carbon bill.
“For events of this scale, environmental responsibility cannot be an afterthought.”
These concerns come amid similar issues during this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup, also hosted in the U.S., with teams playing in heat of up to 36 degrees celsius.
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Other solutions provided by the authors of the study were to lower minimum stadium capacity requirements, to reduce new stadium construction and establish binding environmental standards, rather than relying on voluntary commitments.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is due to begin on June 11 next year and will feature a record 104 matches.
(Photo: Cristopher Rogel Blanquet/Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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