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FOOTBALL MUST VENTURE INTO THE FOREST OF DREAMS
Behind the glitz , glamour and goals there is a truth that dare not speak its name – god ’ s game is simply not sustainable in its current form
WRITTEN BY : JOHN PINCHING
Football at the highest level has become such a well-oiled corporate carousel – such a hopelessly desirable commodity – that it must not stop spinning for a mircosecond , lest it should have to re-examine its principles in sharp focus or , god forbid , alter the currency of its product .
As the football ride continues its 365-day rotation , the swoosh of colour and the pyrotechnics of silverware-lofting does lift the human spirits , but the sport ’ s current ubiquity is at odds with the environmental crisis engulfing the rest of civilisation .
Part of the problem is that football seems to spend most of its time existing in a vortex , orbiting independently from what the rest of us call ‘ the real world ’. As devoted supporters of particular teams – our allegiance swayed by postcode , parentage or childhood whim – oftentimes we are happy for that fantasy to play out indefinitely , such is the bond between us and them , them and us ( the two parties at once blurred and distinct ).
World in motion Make no mistake , modern football has been a huge success story . It somehow managed to pull itself out of the chaos , carnage and concrete of the 1980s , to deliver theatre , romance , Messi and Ronaldo ; where once there was hooliganism , crumbling stadiums and Vinnie Jones .
The global success of top-tier football clubs , with their neo-pristine branding and hopelessly aspirational reputations , have juxtaposed themselves – not as organisations – but as ‘ friends ’ to the fans ; jovial dream-weavers who keep delivering more , like the extender in Willy Wonka ’ s everlasting gobstopper .
But that commercial success has come at a cost to the planet , sustainability and , many would argue , the ethical dimension of the supporter-club symbiosis . The most successful football teams are essentially a living volcano , erupting matches , merch and mesmerising drama on an international time-zone defying scale .
To maintain the economic / entertainment status-quo requires an exponentially increasing supply of energy , air travel , water , single-use plastics , massproduction , synthetic materials and , yes , an unrelenting , putifying exposure to gambling companies . And the byproduct of all that is waste – more waste than you can possibly imagine . sustainabilitymag . com 85