Switzerland, despite itself the champion of carbon dioxide emissions

We do not yet know who will succeed Portugal, Sunday July 11, at the end of the final between England and Italy, in London. On the other hand, we already know the champions of the worst carbon footprint of this Euro 2021 in XXL format. It is not about any of the finalist teams but about Switzerland.

Although eliminated in the quarter-finals, the Nati players fly over this disreputable ranking with just over 350 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions (CO₂). Or, reported to a passenger, the equivalent of nearly 200 return flights between Paris and New York by A320. To arrive at this estimate, The world relied on the expertise of Carbone 4, a consulting firm specializing in carbon footprint management and assessment.

The firm relied on the distances covered by the selections. Initially planned in twelve countries, Euro 2021, imagined by the former boss of European football Michel Platini, took place in eleven countries after the withdrawal from Dublin. An edition that stretched the flights when the previous ones took place in a single country or two at most (Switzerland and Austria in 2008). The twenty-four participating teams will have covered just over 148,000 kilometers cumulatively. Or just over 3,700 tonnes of CO₂. The equivalent of 2,105 Paris-New-York round trips.

According to our calculations, Euro 2016 in France, the first bringing together twenty-four teams (against sixteen until 2012), had generated almost 50% fewer trips with a total distance traveled of 101,109 km. In 2016, it was Russia which won the title of champion of the carbon footprint, mainly because of its distance from the host country, with 7,351 km. In 2021, Switzerland will have covered double the distance (and consumed double the amount of kerosene): 14,784 km.

The French among the least polluting

The Euro draw has taken Swiss players from one end of the continent to the other. They played their first match in Baku (Azerbaijan) on June 12 against the Welsh. Their second in Rome, four days later, against the Italians. Their third again in Baku on June 20 against the Turks. The round of 16 took them to Bucharest (Romania) and on penalties against the French world champions. Their crossing of the enlarged Europe stopped in Russia, in Saint Petersburg, in the quarterfinals against Spain.

European vice-champion of this ranking without reward: Belgium, sent back to Brussels after its quarter-final lost to Italy, with 10,244 km all the same on the clock. Sweden, eliminated in the round of 16, completed the podium with 10,006 km.

The finalists appear in the second part of the table: 14^e place for Italy (4 714 km) and 19^e for England (2,874 km). If they played more matches, they also often played at home: three matches in Rome for Squadra Azzurra, all their meetings in London except their quarter-final in… Rome, for the Three Lions.

Hungary, also host of this Euro in Budapest, is the selection with the lowest carbon footprint (1,124 km), attributable to its trip to Munich for its third and last match against Germany.

The French also conclude this competition among the least polluting teams. They finish at the 16^e place with 100 tonnes of CO₂ (3,759 km). This relative sobriety is due both to the shortness of their journey and to the distances induced by the host cities of their group of origin – Munich (first match against Germany) and Budapest (against Hungary and Portugal).

Limited presence of supporters

Like the Blues or Switzerland, the selections have obviously had recourse to the plane to cover the distances between the sites. Organizer of the event, the European Union of Football Associations (UEFA), however, informs the World two singular cases. The Italians used the train, which emits less greenhouse gases, to go from their training center, around Florence, to Rome, the city of their three matches in the first round. Ditto for the Finns when they leave their capital to settle in their summer base camp in Repino, Russia.

The euro’s carbon footprint cannot be reduced to the sole travel of teams and their delegation

To be completely fair, the carbon footprint of the Euro cannot be reduced to the sole travel of the teams and their delegation, which includes, in the case of France, twenty-six players, their coach, Didier. Deschamps, and the twenty staff members. It would also include the comings and goings of journalists and, above all, spectators.

According to its census, UEFA also issued 240 accreditations to French media holding the rights to broadcast the competition on television or radio, as well as to 102 other members of other French editorial staff.

The European body refuses, on the other hand, to say more about the number of supporters from France. Their presence was limited because of the Covid-19 and the gauges allowed in the stadiums, with the notable exception of the Puskas stadium in Budapest. According to figures from the French Football Federation, they were 4,500 in Munich for the first match against Germany, 5,700 in Budapest for that against Hungary and 7,500 in the same city, against Portugal. And they were almost 1,700 in Bucharest against Switzerland.

Heavy environmental bill

Unsurprisingly, UEFA defends its Euro. She recalls that German, Italian, English and Spanish supporters have each hosted matches in the competition; short trips rather than long journeys. She adds that most of the speakers have not supposed major works, with the exception, again, of the Puskas stadium. Above all, the environmental bill would have been much heavier if the pandemic had not limited the movements of supporters across Europe.

“In view of the many trips that the teams had to make during the competition, UEFA did not sufficiently take into account the question of the carbon footprint when designing this Euro, comments Sylvain Borie, from Carbone 4. She will benefit from doing so in the future. ” Also, the choice of the location of the stadiums and therefore the “Competition design” is fundamental to limit the ecological cost.

An environmental burden which depends above all on the movements of supporters and the preferred modes of transport. According to Carbon 4 calculations, in the event of travel exclusively by plane, CO emissions₂ attributable to the sole movement of French supporters to Budapest (3,515 tonnes of CO₂) for the match against Portugal almost reach those produced by the twenty-four selections throughout the competition.