15:58 19 November 2022
Qatar's World Cup will not be climate-neutral
The soccer World Cup in Qatar is expected to be the first climate-neutral sports event of its kind. Pro-climate activists and analysts, however, put FIFA's declarations in short: greenwashing and creative accounting.
"Our examination of the available evidence raises serious doubts about this claim, which likely underestimates the true emissions levels and climate impacts of the tournament. This is not a harmless exercise, as it misleads players, fans, sponsors and the public into believing that their (potential) participation in the event will not harm the climate," the authors of a report published in May from Carbon Market Watch believe.
According to the authors, the underestimation stems from the choice of a flawed method for calculating the carbon footprint. The biggest allegations concern the construction of seven stadiums. The organization's calculations showed that the construction of the six stadiums alone amounts to at least 1.62 million tonnes of CO2. FIFA said less than 0.7 million tonnes of CO2 for all seven of them.
