Full article (translated): The J.League is promoting “climate action” to solve the problem of climate change, aiming for a global environment where children of the future can enjoy sports safely. As part of this, on April 22nd, the league announced that it would participate in the international initiative “Sport Positive League (SPL)”. The system quantifies soccer clubs’ climate actions and allows them to see their progress and the direction they should aim for at a glance, and the J.League is the first Asian club to participate.
A step to promote decarbonization activities by utilizing local resources
Clubs from four major European leagues, including the English Premier League and the German Bundesliga, are already participating in the SPL. The J.League will join the SPL with all 60 clubs. In addition to competing for scores and rankings related to climate action, fans, supporters, hometowns, companies, and other club stakeholders will be able to easily access objective information on the status of contributions to the environment and environmental issues specific to the region, and will be able to proceed with climate action while comparing with sports leagues around the world.
In addition, the league says that it will be an important step to learn specific ideas and improvement measures from advanced clubs around the world and promote decarbonization activities that utilize local resources.
2025 will be a preparation period, and after hearing from SPL, evaluation criteria will be set for 12 items important to climate change countermeasures. Data will be collected on the effectiveness of a wide range of activities, including energy efficiency at match venues, use of renewable energy, recycling and waste reduction efforts, and promotion of environmental education for players.
Prior to participating in SPL, the J.League established the “J.League Sustainability Business Activity Subsidy System.” This system supports the formulation and implementation of roadmaps and business plans for climate action implemented by J.League clubs, with a total grant amount of 240 million yen, and the maximum application amount for one club is 4 million yen.
In addition, the J.League has launched the “Sustainability Business Activation Project.” The J.League aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 50% across the J.League by 2030, and will work to realize a carbon-neutral local community. The project will implement nine related measures in parallel, including the introduction of the SPL, and will promote sustainability projects that leverage the network of the J.League and J.Clubs.
Full article (in Japanese): https://www.asahi.com/sdgs/article/15733650
