en.Wedoany.com Reported - Analysis by climate accounting firm Greenly shows that the carbon footprint of the 2026 World Cup is expected to reach 7.8 million tons of CO2 equivalent, more than double the 3.63 million tons of CO2 equivalent reported by FIFA for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
The newly expanded FIFA World Cup will be held in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, and its expanded geographical scale comes with environmental costs. Cross-continental transportation determines the tournament's carbon footprint. The decentralized nature of the 2026 World Cup makes air travel more reliant, leading to increased emissions. The expanded format includes 48 teams for the first time, compared to 32 in 2022—a 50% increase in participating nations and 40 additional matches in the schedule.
In previous editions, the construction of permanent physical infrastructure was a major source of initial environmental impact. Qatar built seven new stadiums from scratch, with raw materials and construction accounting for nearly a quarter of its reported total carbon footprint. The 2026 host countries avoided this capital-intensive approach by leveraging existing NFL stadiums, with stadium renovations accounting for only 2.3% of the total carbon footprint. However, savings on the ground are offset by carbon costs in the air. Greenly attributes approximately 87.8% of emissions to spectator travel, a structural consequence of spreading 104 matches across a continent lacking a fast rail network. In the 2026 World Cup, matches will be held in 16 North American cities, from Mexico City to Vancouver, covering a stadium area of 12,157,196 square kilometers. In Qatar, all eight stadiums used for the tournament were located within an area of less than 1,500 square kilometers.
Greenly calculates that spectator travel totals 6.82 million tons of CO2 equivalent, with an average emission of 2,407 kg of CO2 equivalent per international spectator. An estimated 2.1 million international fans are expected to arrive in North America during the tournament, with international flights alone generating 5.05 million tons of CO2 equivalent. Domestic travel among the three host countries adds another 1.76 million tons of CO2 equivalent.
Public attention often focuses on the travel logistics of participating teams, but Greenly's data shows that player travel is one of the smallest components of its carbon footprint. Team travel for all 48 national teams totals approximately 0.2% of the tournament's total carbon footprint, or about 17,677 tons of CO2 equivalent, equivalent to the annual carbon footprint of roughly 1,880 people.
Alexis Normand, CEO and co-founder of Greenly, said on LinkedIn: "Shouldn't global events be an opportunity to think about global issues? In fact, climate-friendly sports events are feasible, and world championships should help accelerate the energy transition. How? By implementing a Marshall Plan-style investment strategy to promote low-carbon transportation, infrastructure, or smart local ticketing. But to achieve this, FIFA should introduce best practices and conduct climate scoring for bidding nations, just as companies do when selecting low-carbon suppliers as part of the tender process."
Several regional parameters have changed the operational impact of this tournament compared to previous editions. The carbon intensity of the host countries' power grids is about 25% lower than Qatar's grid, so despite 40 additional matches, the electricity impact on stadiums has decreased. Meanwhile, accommodation efficiency varies by region: air conditioning in desert heat causes hotels in Qatar to emit 103 kg of CO2 equivalent per person per night, while hotels in the US emit about 18 kg of CO2 equivalent per person per night. However, these operational savings do not offset the overall logistical impact of the tournament. FIFA continues to make emission reduction, waste management, and climate mitigation core principles, but hosting an event across such a vast geographical area presents inherent difficulties.
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