Newsletter: 2024/25 Football Season Compliance
In today’s football landscape, sustainability compliance is essential. At Enovation Consulting, we specialise in guiding sports clubs through sustainability practices, ensuring you meet regulatory requirements and benefit from a sustainable business model.
In this newsletter, we highlight some of the key current and upcoming regulations across international and national competitions while showing how we can help you comply.
Coming up…
European Union
UEFA
LaLiga
Premier League
Serie A
Bundesliga
UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action
European Union:
Under the EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), certain football clubs must meet detailed sustainability reporting standards:
Scope: Applies to large companies and listed entities, affecting many top-tier football clubs.
Double Materiality: Clubs must report both their impact on the environment and society and how these issues affect their business.
Environmental Metrics: Disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, water consumption, waste management, and biodiversity impacts is required.
Social and Governance Metrics: Reporting on employee conditions, diversity, human rights, community engagement, and sustainability risk management is mandatory.
Audit: Sustainability information must be audited for accuracy.
Timeline: Compliance for large businesses (2 of 3 of the following criteria: €40 million revenue; 250 employees; €20 million in assets) begins in 2024, with full adherence, including SMEs, expected by 2027.
UEFA:
UEFA regulations state that clubs participating in UEFA competitions must implement and publish a sustainability strategy in line with the UEFA Football Sustainability Strategy 2030 and relevant UEFA guidelines. Key points include:
Sustainability Strategy: Implement and publish a sustainability strategy (Article 27).
Environmental Policy: Establish and implement a policy to improve environmental footprint (Article 32).
Social and Environmental Officer: Appoint a Social and Environmental Officer (Article 44).
Domestic Leagues
LaLiga:
In Spanish Law, Ley 11/2018, mandates that companies, including football clubs, with more than 250 employees or meeting certain financial thresholds, must produce and publish non-financial information reports (known as Estado de Información No Financiera or ‘EINF’). However, La Liga has requested that all clubs - irrespective of size - produce and publish their EINF.
The league also encourages clubs to adopt practices that enhance resource efficiency, reduce carbon footprints, promote regular sustainability reporting and promote circular economy principles. Through the launch of “LaLiga Environmental Fair Play”, clubs can now access resources and receive funding for sustainability initiatives.
Premier League
The Premier League’s Environmental Sustainability Commitment - building on existing action taken by clubs to reduce their environmental impact and provide a foundation to underpin long-term environmental ambitions - requires each club to:
Develop a robust environmental sustainability policy, by the end of the 2024/25 season
Designate a senior employee to lead the club’s environmental sustainability activities
Develop a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions dataset (scope 1, 2 and 3) by the end of the 2025/26 season and work towards a standardised football-wide approach to measuring emissions
Support the development of a common framework for action via the Premier League Sustainability Working Group (PLSWG).
Serie A
Serie A’s sustainability strategy is aligned with UEFA’s 11 sustainability pillars, ensuring that clubs adhere to comprehensive sustainability practices across environmental, social, and governance aspects. This alignment helps Italian clubs integrate sustainability into their core operations.
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga’s sustainability guidelines for 2024-25 and 2025-26 outline a number of criteria which are marked as “B” and “C” criteria. The “B” criteria are mandated and non-compliant clubs are liable to sanctions. The guidelines also indicate that the number of B-criteria will gradually increase over the years, including reclassification of some current C-criteria.
Among these B criteria are the following:
Sustainability Strategy: Clubs must provide evidence of incorporating sustainability into their statutes, corporate governance documents, or organisational rules.
Energy Management: Clubs must have regular measurements of energy consumption, focusing on reducing fossil fuels and increasing renewable energy use.
Waste Management: A sustainable waste management concept must be in place.
UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action
For those clubs that have signed up to the UNFCCC’s Sports for Climate Action, reporting and measurement of the initial climate action plan (for which SfCA recommends third-party verification) needs to be submitted annually. Failure to submit these documents can impact the club's standing within the SfCA, potentially leading to warnings, loss of good standing, or even removal from the framework. Regular submission ensures transparency, accountability, and continued participation in the initiative.
The documents that need to be submitted include:
Greenhouse Gas Inventory: Detailed reports on the club’s greenhouse gas emissions using recognised methodologies.
Verification and Audit Reports: Documentation of third-party verification or audits of the club’s environmental impact and sustainability initiatives.
Sustainability Impact Assessments: Detailed assessments of specific sustainability projects or initiatives undertaken by the club.
*The above list has been compiled to the best of our knowledge at the time of writing. It is not to be considered an exhaustive list of all national and international laws that apply to your club. Rather, a selection of the key measures each domestic league is implementing.
Enovation Consulting’s Expertise
Since 2022 we’ve been working with a number of football industry stakeholders on wide range of sustainability services.
Our Sustainability Football Team
Striker: Caroline Carlin
Operations expert and former Southampton FC Operations and Sustainability Manager, Caroline is AIMEA and ISO20121 qualified. Her expertise in driving sustainability initiatives within a football club will help you map out your pathway to a greener future.
Midfielder: Tom Wheeler
As Sustainable Partnerships Manager, our midfielder, Tom links defence with attack. With three years of experience in the sector, he takes an academic and holistic approach to your business and sustainability needs. Tom’s balanced perspective ensures comprehensive and effective sustainability strategies.
Defender (C): Dr Cristiana Pace
As the team captain, Cristiana brings years of experience to the table. She has overseen the design and implementation of sustainability strategies at AS Roma and the Coppa Italia. Her leadership and strategic vision are invaluable assets to our team.
Goalkeeper: CeCe Liu
Sustainable Innovation and Carbon Specialist with experience in Serie A, CeCe is our Enovation Goalkeeper, excelling in data handling and boasting top skills (GHG accounting: GHG protocol and DEFRA, EMS ISO14001, LCA standards ISO14064 and ISO14040) and experience in carbon reduction roadmaps. Her work ensures your club achieves significant carbon footprint reductions.