Fifa misled fans over ‘carbon-neutral Qatar World Cup’, regulator finds

Fifa misled fans by claiming the Qatar World Cup would be carbon neutral, a Swiss regulator has ruled.

A report by the Commission for Loyalty, which regulates advertising in Switzerland, found that Fifa broke rules against unfair competition by making claims about the tournament that could not be proven, while using controversial offsetting measures that would not comply with Swiss standards. Fifa, which is based in Switzerland, has been warned to “refrain” from making such claims again.

The verdict is damning for football’s governing body and a victory for environmental campaigners from across Europe. Andrew Simms, director of the New Weather Institute, which submitted a complaint from the UK, said: “Fifa has been found out for using false green claims as a substitute for real climate action. Sport continues to be used as a giant billboard by some of the biggest climate culprits to promote polluting products and lifestyles, threatening the future of athletes, fans and the sport itself. It’s time that sport, and its governing bodies like Fifa, used their power and position to accelerate the low carbon transition, instead of delaying it and misleading the public in the process.”

The message that Qatar would be the “first carbon neutral World Cup” was prominent in the buildup to the tournament, even though estimates pointed to the tournament generating more CO2 than any previous event. Fifa claimed that these emissions would either be offset or “compensated’’ for by – for example – the planting of gardens around the stadiums. The Swiss regulator found these claims to be unproven and unprovable.

“In the view of the chamber, the question of whether the promised compensation is truly realistic remains unclear,” the