Companies specializing in the fossil fuel market (oil and natural gas) currently spend around $5.6 billion on sports sponsorships, according to a report by the New Weather Institute (NWI), a think tank created to “accelerate the rapid transition to a just economy that thrives within planetary boundaries.”
According to the study, there were 205 deals in total. Motorsport, specifically motorsport, made the most money, with US$2.19 billion and 40 active partnerships. Football came in second, raking in US$994 million across 59 deals, while cricket, American football and cycling, which each raked in over US$450 million through sponsorships, rounded out the Top 5.
Among the companies, the one that spends the most money is Aramcowith US$1.3 billion. The Saudi oil giant has ten agreements, including with F1 and FIFA. Second place is taken by British petrochemicals Ineoswith US$777 million invested in seven sponsorships. Then came the British Shell and France Total Energywith expenditures of US$470 million and US$340 million respectively.
Finally, the list of athletes who have benefited from sponsorship in this segment is also extensive and includes names such as Lionel Messi (football), Cristiano Ronaldo (football), Anthony Joshua (boxing), Tyson Fury (boxing) e Eliud Kipchoge (athletics). The report states that some athletes involved in this type of sponsorship are encouraged to align their social media posts with support for companies in the segment.
Sports Wash
Still in the study, NWI took a strong stance in stating that brands that deal with fossil fuels on a daily basis are doing what is called “sports wash”the name given to the use of sport as a way to enhance the public image of an individual, company or even a country. Saudi Arabiafor example, accused of sportswashing with the aim of hiding human rights violations committed by the kingdom.
For the NWI, all of the companies named in the report are using sponsorship in a way that “misleads the public and undermines decarbonization efforts”, despite growing calls to protect the environment.
“Oil companies are delaying climate action and adding fuel to the fire of global warming, using the old tobacco playbook to pretend to be champions of sport. But fossil fuel air pollution and extreme weather events caused by a warming world threaten the future of athletes, fans and events from the Winter Olympics to the World Cup. If we want sport to have a future, it must clean up the dirty money of big polluters and stop promoting its own destruction,” said Andrew Simms, co-director of the NWI.
It is no surprise that the study was released on the eve of the Future Summit, which will be the culmination of the 79th UN General Assembly and will take place in the coming days in New York (USA). At the meeting, which will bring together heads of state and government from around the world, the aim is to discuss the “irreplaceable need” for greater international cooperation to address pressing challenges, such as climate change. Other topics, such as poverty and inequality, will also be debated.
It is also worth noting that the report makes five recommendations to sports organizations and global sports governing bodies. The list includes a ban on sponsorship by fossil fuel companies, stricter due diligence on companies’ climate change track records, and greater efforts to find more sustainable sources of funding.
