Arsenal Succeed in Sustainability

August 7, 2020 

2020 FA Cup champions Arsenal FC have saved more than 10.7 million kilograms of carbon emissions during their last 103 home games, ranking it as the most sustainable team in the Premier League. 

Arsenal’s bid to become carbon neutral was supported by the installation of a battery storage system to reduce emissions at their 60,000-capacity Emirates Stadium in 2018. Two years of savings which are roughly equivalent to the amount of carbon absorbed by 53,500 trees during their lifetime according to SportsPro's Insider Series.  

Alice Larkworthy, Arsenal’s senior partner services manager, said that the club was also working with its fans and stakeholders, including sponsors, to help shift the mindset around renewable energy and environmentally friendly practices. 

“For us, we’re very much a values-led club and [that] forms the basis of all of our partnerships. We want to ensure that we have that genuine alignment with what our objectives are. 

“Now that there is a shift in focus for a lot of people and a for lot of partners in particular - whether that is with us or they have their own sustainability objectives we can work alongside - it’s all about working in tandem and learning from our partners.” 

To support the club on its journey to carbon neutrality, Arsenal partnered with UK sustainable energy supplier Octopus Energy in 2016, with whom it is working on athlete-led initiatives featuring several first-team players. 

Larkworthy shares that since 1999 Arsenal have planted approximately 29,000 trees, 500 of which were alongside the Octopus team that incorporated messaging that targeted the age group who will ultimately be affected in the future. The club's key areas of focus towards achieivng continual environmental improvements include:

• Energy Consumption
• Waste Management & Disposal
• Water Consumption
• Travel
• Communication 
• Other Projects, e.g. The Colney Wood and sustainable food sourcing for its catering operations

“The way the last few months have been, I think a lot more people are looking in the mirror and thinking what can they do. As much as there are target [audiences] such as the younger generation, I do think that this is something that everybody needs to be aware of and can do their little bit and make small changes for the greater good.” 

 This story originally appeared on SportsPro Media.