It’s Coming Home! But at What Cost?

The European Football Championship, that sees everyone from Keir Starmer to your 90-year-old grandmother either waving at the television in frustration (the most common emotion expressed by the English fans) or in a burst of ecstatic happiness. Emotions are running high as entire populations unite behind their teams, and Euros 2024 is proving no different.

The competition is shaping up: Spain has regained a threatening position, Germany is back on form, France remains as dangerous as ever, and the talented England team, is underperforming as usual.

WHEN England finally pull their finger out and emerge from their cocoon as the beautiful championship-winning butterfly we all know they can be, what will their carbon footprint be over the entirety of the tournament?

As expected, travel is the largest contributor to the winner’s carbon footprint, closely followed by the teams’ consumption of food. This is because the team needs to travel from England to Germany, then between several of the 10 host cities while playing their 7 games, and ultimately return to England, hopefully with the trophy securely packed in the luggage compartment.

Beginning with travel, a typical private jet flight to Germany emits approximately 5.9 to 23.9 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Given the number of people, equipment, and personal luggage involved, the English team’s flight alone is likely to be toward the higher end of that range- let’s estimate around 20 tonnes, With England making this journey twice, their emissions from flights alone would amount to 40 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

After England lands in Germany, they will have travelled from Berlin to Blankenheim, where the English team is based and thus where they will return to after each game. While they travel by coach between the various cities where their matches will be played en route to the final, they will cover approximately 3,370 miles and emit around 1 tonne of carbon dioxide. Therefore, excluding all their other various travels around Germany such as going to the shops or dining out, the English team will emit 41 tonnes of carbon dioxide from travel alone.

Moving onto food consumption: the average person consumes approximately 38kg of food per month. This means that the 50 members of the English squad and entourage will consume roughly 1.9 tonnes of food. This consumption will result in approximately 15 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

There are many contributors to the team’s carbon footprint, but as they are challenging to quantify we have used a proxy measure – adding approximately 1 tonne of CO2. When adding the emissions of travel, food and other contributors, the entire team will emit roughly 57 tonnes of CO2. This amount is more than four times the average person emits annually. Consider that there are 23 other teams playing a minimum of 3 games each, with hundreds of thousands of fans travelling to Germany to watch them. The combined carbon emissions of the tournament become significant!

In summary, while we’re all gathered on our sofas, at the pub, or out with friends enjoying the Euros, it’s crucial to consider the environmental impact of this tournament. I am not suggesting that anyone should refrain from enjoying the Euros- I too will be screaming at my TV with family and friends. The Euros are an event many follow religiously every four years, yet I hadn’t previously considered its environmental footprint. While we all hope for an England victory, it’s essential to pause and reflect on the broader impact of such large-scale events on our planet.

Enjoyment of entertainment should not come at the expense of our reliance on the environment. Perhaps we should explore ways to reduce emissions from these events. This could involve using alternative renewable fuels or implementing measures like limiting ticket sales to mitigate the environmental impact of increased air and ground traffic in host countries. What other strategies could be employed to reduce carbon emissions from major events like the Euros? I hope this encourages you to consider the climate while celebrating England’s success — being mindful of the planet is a significant first step!

Posted 28-06-24 by Freddy Bachman after just one week’s work experience