According to a Swiss regulatory body, Fifa made misleading assertions about the reduced environmental impact of hosting the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The competition was billed as the first “fully carbon-neutral World Cup” by the organization that oversees football on a global scale.
The Swiss Fairness Commission, which regulates advertising, has ruled that objections from five European states should be maintained.
During the proceedings, FIFA could not give proof that the assertions were accurate, according to the statement made by the SLK.
The Supreme Court of Kenya (SLK) added the following in its judgement, which is not legally binding: “The SLK has advised Fifa to refrain from making unsubstantiated claims in the future.” Particularly the claim that the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which is schedule to be held in Qatar, will not impact the climate or the amount of carbon dioxide present in atmosphere.
According to Fifa, which has its headquarters in Zurich, the World Cup left an environmental footprint of as much as 3.6 million tonnes of equivalent carbon waste. However, this was counterbalanced by several initiatives, including offsetting the flight emissions of every ticketholder, as well as several other schemes, such as electric mobility for public transport around the tournament.
The United Kingdom, Switzerland, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands contested the statement, and the SLK upheld each objection “following an arduous and complex process.”
Environmentalists have warned that the tournament may have a carbon impact that is three times bigger than what is indicated, according to media in November. The environmentalists dubbed Fifa’s assertion that it was carbon-neutral “dangerous and misleading.”
Complaints centred on the idea that Fifa’s claim of a carbon-neutral World Cup is incorrect because of an underestimating of emissions and a lack of trust in its offsets. According to campaigners, this implies that customers and spectators are being misled into thinking that the World Cup will not impact the environment.
“The SLK concluded that it should not be claimed that sustainability goals have been achieved if there are no definitive and generally accepted methods for measuring sustainability or ensuring that sustainability measures have been implemented,” the regulator said. “This is because there are no methods for ensuring that sustainability measures have been implemented.”
“In addition, the football body has repeatedly promised to fully offset emissions that will be definitively calculated at a later date,” the report stated. “This will be done on a later date,” it continued.
“However, it did not prove that the emissions stated in the ex-ante report had been offset, and it did not set out a plan to define how it will further offset emissions.”
In response to the verdict, Fifa issued a statement stating that it is “fully aware that climate change is most pressing challenges of our time as well as believes it requires each of us to take immediate as well as sustainable climate action.”
The statement went on to say that “Fifa is also fully aware of the impacts that mega-events have on the economy, the natural environment, and on people and communities” and that the organization “has been making substantial efforts to tackle those impacts and, at the same time, to use opportunities to maximize the positive effects of its most iconic tournament,” which would include Qatar 2022. It is still dedicated to working closely with the major stakeholders to develop new ways to continuously enhance its techniques.
“In light of recommendation made by the Swiss Commission for Fairness in Advertising, Fifa is currently evaluating the rationale behind its recommendation, which is still open to being challenged,”
According to Andrew Simms, director of the environmental group New Weather Institute, which is based in the United Kingdom and was the organization that made the complaint on behalf of the United Kingdom, additional steps need to be taken to minimize greenwashing.
Greenwashing refers to the practice of misleading members of public into believing that products, goals, and policies of an organization are beneficial to the environment.
“Regulators are slowly waking up to the scale of the issue as well as the threat it poses by sowing confusion to genuine efforts to combat climate change. This is a slow but positive development.” The world’s largest polluters are coming to the realization that their time is running out.
“However, there is an immediate need for more stringent and proactive legislation to put an end to greenwashing and reduce the damage caused by high-carbon advertising in order to safeguard both humans and the natural world.
“The future of athletes, spectators, and the sport itself is in jeopardy as long as polluting products and lifestyles are promoted through the use of sport, which continues to be employed as a giant billboard by some of the most significant contributors to climate change.
“It’s time that sport, and its governing bodies like Fifa, used their power and position to accelerate the low-carbon transition, rather than delaying it and misleading the public in the process,” said one commentator. “It’s time that sport.”
