Qatar 2022: carbon impact of the World Cup underestimated according to carbon startup Greenly

"It is impossible to accurately estimate the carbon footprint of the World Cup in Qatar. However, with our estimates alone, we are already close to 6 million tons of CO2-eq (carbon dioxide equivalent), which is almost double the emissions announced by Qatar (3.6 million tonnes)," said Alexis Normand, CEO and founder of the French carbon reporting startup Greenly, on 08/11/2022.

The French startup specialised in carbon assessments published a study on the environmental impact of the 2022 World Cup the same day, focusing in particular on the carbon footprint of infrastructure, transport and accommodation for spectators, as well as the digital pollution generated by the event.

Presented as the first carbon-neutral competition by FIFA and the Organising Committee, the 2022 World Cup obtained ISO 20121 certification (sustainable events) on 20/06/2022. Although Qatar 2022's strategy is partly based on the purchase of carbon credits (via the financing of "green projects") in order to offset the tournament's footprint, with one month to go before the competition, "only three offset projects…