Boycott Global SportLet’s face it, whether it’s Motorsport, Rugby or FreeRide, elite sport is an environmental disaster zone that places a huge and completely unacceptable burden on planetary health for no discernable benefit.
Visit any governing body’s website and there will be a sustainability page outlining the measures the sport is taking to reduce it’s carbon emissions but they amount to little more than a very thin veneer of greenwashing. Sadly, the Free Ride World Tour is no exception. Don’t believe me? Just visit their website: https://www.freerideworldtour.com/
The bottom line is that pro-sports are a profligate waste of finite resources and are responsible for a staggering carbon footprint, estimated to be somewhere in the region of 350 million tons of CO2 annually – all of which are completely unnecessary.
The tired old argument that elite sport encourages participation at a local level and improves human health and wellbeing is just that – tired and old. It’s also totally bogus.
As elite athletes smash more and more world records the rest of us are getting sicker and fatter. Conditions linked to poor diet and lack of exercise such as diabetes, cancer, stroke, heart attack and chronic metabolic illness continue to rise across the globe.
The pro-sports business model relies on a few elite athletes who are served up to a much larger number of fans. If enough of us remove our fandom (or even our casual interest) the model fails. Our collective action really could make a difference that can only be a good thing for the planet – and, as it turns out, for us too.
If more of us get out there and participate in the sports we love instead of sitting on the couch watching others do it for us, there’s a knock on health benefit for us as well as the planet. We may not be as good as our sporting heroes but who needs sporting heroes?
Do yourself and the planet a massive favour: Boycott elite sports, improve your health and help to remove hundreds of millions of tons of unnecessary CO2 from the atmosphere every single year.
It’s a double whammy win win.
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I completely disagree with this perspective. In particular the statement that elite sports does not encourage participation at a local level and therefore has no role in improving human health and wellbeing, I believe is factually incorrect. Indeed, quite the opposite.
In English football for example, financial support from elite football is crucial for the development and sustainability of grassroots programs. The Football Foundation, established in 2000, exemplifies this support. Funded by the Premier League, The FA, and the Government (via Sport England), the Foundation has invested over £1.5 billion in grassroots football. But equally importantly elite football serves as a powerful motivator for individuals to engage in the sport at the grassroots level. The visibility of professional matches and players ignites passion and encourages people of all ages to participate in local football activities. This widespread engagement fosters community cohesion and promotes physical health.
Globally, billions of people take great enjoyment of watching elite sports every week either live or on TV and this has a huge discernible benefit to society and national and local communities.
I agree that elite sports could and should do much better to be more sustainable. Fans are not going to boycott the sports they love, that’s a non starter in terms of affecting change. Instead, engaging as an informed and active fan—demanding sustainability improvements while continuing to support the sports that bring value to millions—is a more productive and impactful approach.