What Pressures Really Push Pro Football Toward Environmental Sustainability in Europe

This study examines how different types of institutional pressures influence the adoption of environmental governance and operational practices in European professional football organizations.

As environmental concerns grow in global sport, understanding what motivates clubs to embrace environmental sustainability is key. This study applies institutional theory (focusing on coercive, normative, and mimetic pressures) to explain sustainability action in European football, offering insights into an underexplored sector of sport management.

Researchers surveyed 122 representatives from professional football clubs and stadiums across 11 European countries, measuring their environmental practices and the pressures they face. The authors then analyzed how each type of pressure influenced two categories: governance practices (like appointing environmental officers) and operational practices (like reducing energy and waste).

Results show that coercive pressures (from stakeholders like sponsors, associations, and fans) significantly drive governance practices, while normative pressures (like standards and certification) strongly influence operational practices. Mimetic pressures (copying other clubs) were not significant for either, suggesting a lack of visible “first movers” in this space.

These results imply that external pressure works: aligning with standards and responding to stakeholder expectations are more likely to drive sustainability than simply following competitors’ lead. They also highlight that there is a necessity to account for a certain level of heterogeneity of practices and approaches to sport sustainability.

CITE: Daddi, T., Todaro, N. M., Iraldo, F., & Frey, M. (2021). Institutional pressures on the adoption of environmental practices: a focus on European professional football. Journal of Environmental planning and management, 1-23. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09640568.2021.1927679

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