The Game’s Not So Friendly Side
We sat down with Arsenal Academy player Alexei Rojas to discuss his eco-friendly behaviours, shining light on a new generation of players pushing football toward sustainability.
3 host nations, 16 cities, 48 teams, 104 games and hundreds of thousands of air miles.
The 2026 World Cup, spread across the US, Canada and Mexico, is set to be the biggest sporting event in history.
On the flipside, it may also become the most environmentally damaging.
With more matches, travel and tournaments in the football calendar, the beautiful game faces a not-so-beautiful question.
Can football continue to grow at this scale without confronting and combating its environmental impact?
Next Wave’s Voice
Players are now asking the same questions.
Whether speaking about player welfare, mental health, racism or climate change, young players increasingly see influence as a responsibility – and are therefore becoming more willing to challenge issues that creep onto the pitch.
For years, sustainability wasn’t really a topic of conversation in football. Now, a new generation of players are bringing it to the forefront.
Among them is Alexei Rojas.
The Arsenal academy and U20 Colombia goalkeeper represents the Next Wave of players using their platform to create meaningful change in the game.
“Players are starting to realise the power and the responsibility that we have, to do more than just be footballers. When we’re able to inspire, educate and change lives at the same time, then that’s the beauty of being a professional athlete in this sport”, Rojas said to us in an interview last week.
Football’s power and global reach gives players a unique opportunity to affect positive change on and off the pitch.
“Football has a huge platform. Fans have strong connections with their clubs and players. That’s where the real power lies - to inspire and influence people to drive global change.”
Beyond the Pitch
Off the pitch Rojas has become an advocate for sustainability within football.
He’s an environmental ambassador for Green Football’s Great Save Campaign, speaks at conferences and collabs with other eco-friendly movements.
At Arsenal’s Hale End Academy, he has led initiatives in eliminating single-use plastics to the implementation of compostable and recyclable packaging and more conscious energy use around training facilities.
Alongside this Rojas has collaborated with Football for Future, implementing a sustainable strategy with the Premier League to educate young players about sustainability.
He also works with Charity Boots, which tackles issues such as inequality and accessibility through donating and repurposing football boots and kit for children who otherwise would not have access to them.
“A lot of things are being done by clubs collectively, and I’m sure that many of those things are also being backed by players, because players understand the importance of it. It’s fulfilling for us to know that we’re able to impact people positively.”
For Rojas, sustainability is not simply a campaign attached to football. It is something that shapes his everyday lifestyle and personal choices.
“My car’s electric. I don’t use any single use packaging. I cook a lot from scratch, buy locally sourced foods and avoid fast fashion and overconsumption.
It’s also about influencing behaviours around me and encouraging more sustainable behaviours at the club and in my circle.”
His interest in sustainability began at a young age through his mother’s work in renewable energy.
“My mum was a risk manager for companies that built offshore wind farms, and when I was younger, she explained the importance of renewable energy and sustainability to me. That sparked me to do more research myself and understand what I can do personally.
Now I’m fortunate to have a large platform through football and I see that as a responsibility to be able to positively influence people and encourage more sustainable change in everyday life.”
Player Activism and Influence
In this digital era, athletes possess unprecedented reach and influence through their social media platforms. Modern footballers can reach millions of people instantly. As a result, many footballers increasingly feel a responsibility to raise awareness around certain issues that extend far beyond the game itself.
While many players speak openly about important causes, few have used their influence around sustainability than Hector Bellerin.
The former Arsenal defender has become one of the football’s leading environmental advocates through his work with forever green - Real Betis’ sustainability initiative aimed at reducing the club’s carbon footprint for projects involving recycled kits, seats made from fishing nets, up-cycled fashion and use of electric vehicles for staff and players.
Bellerin is also an investor in Forest Green Rovers, a fifth-division English side known for its sustainability initiatives and the first football club in the world certified as carbon-neutral by the UN on Climate Change. During his time at Arsenal, Bellerin funded the planting of 3k trees for every Arsenal victory for the final two months of a Premier League campaign.
For Rojas, seeing someone at his own club using football’s platform in that way was hugely influential.
“It’s inspiring to see someone who has such a large profile doing that kind of work, especially at the same club that I am at now.”
Rojas hopes to continue similar initiatives throughout his own career including reforestation projects linked to clean sheets.
Football’s Sustainability Contradiction
With the World Cup carrying a heavy carbon bill this summer - teams travelling entire continents between fixtures, fans flying thousands of miles to follow their nation and several host cities facing extreme heat conditions, climate action is needed more than ever.
Rojas acknowledges that football can never be completely sustainable due to the demands of elite competition and global travel, but believes the sport still has responsibility to improve where it can.
“Football is never going to be 100% sustainable, travel is part of the game. The most important thing is focusing on what we can control, whether that’s initiatives that clubs take to engage and educate fans, reforestation projects, or how stadiums and training grounds are managed.”
For Rojas, major international tournaments should be used as opportunities to educate people and leave a lasting impact beyond football itself.
“I think the biggest thing is how we inspire people, how we use these opportunities to educate people and drive sustainable change globally.
World Cups unite people, families, countries, and even unite whole continents. We need that unification to be global, for us to continue tackling the problem with climate change and addressing all of the issues that are facing our planet, so that we can have a sustainable future.”
The football industry has an enormous environmental footprint, but Rojas believes that if clubs, players and organisations lead by example they can help shape wider social change.
“All of these little things are massive for us, not only for us now and the general sustainability of the planet, but also the longevity of the game, because for us to be able to play football at a high level, compete in major tournaments for many years to come, we need to make sure that the playing conditions are adequate for that.
That young players coming through actually have the places to play, the weather’s not out of control, and that we’re still being able to generate future talents year after year.”
Football’s Future
Football increasingly finds itself caught between commercial expansion and sustainability, but the game must prioritise a sustainable future.
Rojas believes more players and clubs must continue leading by example, as football has the power to shape wider social change.
“The community projects that clubs do already are incredible, and they have a huge impact on people. If more players and clubs continue role modelling sustainable behaviours, then football can have an even greater impact and ensure the longevity of our game.”
Rojas wishes to be more than a footballer and intends to leave a lasting legacy on and off the pitch.
“Personally, it is to be as impactful off the pitch because of what I’ve done, as well as a footballer long term.
To become the real driver of all of us being more aware of our planet and our impact. So, we can look back on football that was a sport that really drove us to be more sustainable as a society.”
Major tournaments produce the highest single-event carbon footprints in football. The 2030 World Cup will be jointly hosted by Morocco, Portugal and Spain (celebrating centenary, 3 matches will be played in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay).
The 2034 World Cup will take place in Saudi Arabia and will span 11 stadiums – none of which have been built yet.