Chesterfield win Planet Super League: 8,000 people take part in planet-saving campaign
Chesterfield enjoyed a perfect PSL campaign - 11 wins out of 11 in Group A, 33 points, the families involved completing 1,793 activities and thereby scoring 2,627 goals. But perhaps the most staggering stat is that they saved 1,761kgs in CO2 emissions in the process.
Thursday 17 June 2021 13:16, UK
The Euros might be dominating the headlines, but there's another competition which has just reached the climax of its latest campaign.
We're talking about Planet Super League, the tournament which directly engages football fans to do planet-saving activities in the name of the club they support, in competitive but friendly fashion. The latest winner, in season two, isn't Manchester City or Chelsea. It's… Chesterfield.
Before we get to the Spireites, don't be confused by the title. This is absolutely nothing to do with that botched attempt by Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus and nine other clubs to break away from the rest of European football and form their own competition.
In fact, instead of something which was clearly divisive, this Super League seeks to unite everyone in pursuit of climate action, with fans from teams involved doing their bit, be it eating a meat-free meal or switching their screens off for an evening to save electricity, to score goals, win games and the title. As they rise up the table, their carbon footprint reduces.
Chesterfield enjoyed a perfect campaign - 11 wins out of 11 in Group A, 33 points, the families involved completing 1,793 activities and thereby scoring 2,627 goals. But perhaps the most staggering stat is that they saved 1,761kgs in CO2 emissions in the process.
One of Chesterfield's most active families was the Tooley-Browns, and mum Emma was delighted to have got involved with the project.
"We have had a brilliant time taking part in Planet Super League," she said. "It's provided loads of fun for the family, helped make the planet greener; we now use environmentally friendly washing capsules, take more notice of the nature around us and we will continue to enjoy our screen-free evenings."
And that's the real key to this. The ability that sport has to engage with a huge audience of followers is nothing new, especially football, but harness a fan's passion to do whatever they can to help his or her club win, combine that with the message that their efforts can help save the planet, and you've got a compelling combination.
The fun element and positivity vibe is important too - the variety of activities (60 in total, all of them Covid-safe) include even creative tasks like making a bug stadium or a scarecrow goalie for the garden.
Culinary efforts are also encouraged and embraced, and for good reason. Researchers at the University of Oxford found that cutting meat and dairy products from your diet could reduce an individual's carbon footprint from food by up to 73 per cent, and on average, a vegan diet saves 4,200 litres of water, 20.4kgs of grains, 9.1kgs of CO2 equivalent and 2.8 metres squared of forested land per day. New Zealand footballer Katie Rood is vegan, and she's offered her recipes for PSL families to have a crack at every week.
Of their Planet Super League win, Keith Jackson, Chesterfield FC Community Trust's Head of Sports and Activities commented: "The commitment from fans to make positive environmental efforts in the name of the club is incredible. We will proudly display the trophy at the Technique Stadium, but this really belongs to our fans."
Ah yes, the trophy. You might expect some sort of wooden-looking cup made out of recyclable materials, which of course would be fine. But instead it's a classier specimen, along the lines of pre-used, pre-loved.
The PSL silverware is a beautiful old trophy, made in 1888 - football trivia geeks will know that is the year the Football League was formed. And it's a nice angle that over half of the 12 founder clubs are represented in Planet Super League - Burnley, Aston Villa, Derby County, Notts County, Stoke, West Brom and Wolves.
Whilst Chesterfield took the overall title, special mention also goes to Northampton Town fans who won the Planet Super League Impact Award for scoring the most goals and their prize was pretty special too. In a partnership with the Rainforest Trust, they will protect the equivalent of 1,000 football pitches of Bolivian Amazon rainforest forever, in the name of Northampton's fans. The Golden Boot went to the COYS family playing for Tottenham for completing the most activities and scoring the most goals of any family this season.
All those efforts are not lost on the organisers either. Tom Gribbin, Planet Super League's co-founder said: "We are proud to see how our spring season, with a host of new activities and a larger format, has resonated with fan families. We are continuing to grow, innovate and evolve our model to make it more and more impactful, with big things to come."
In just its second season, the number of clubs involved in Planet Super League, mainly through their foundation arm, rose to 24. 8,000 people took part in the latest campaign, completing over 17,900 activities, saving 56,057kg CO2, the equivalent to planting 3,203 trees.
But they're not done there. For the next challenge, 33 clubs are taking part, and a bit like the FA Cup third round, this is where some big names join the fray. Newcomers include Arsenal, Chelsea and Leeds United, with 60 summer activities for their fans to choose from.
