Environmental sustainability in sport: a systematic literature review

Environmental matters in sport: sustainable research in the academy

“…Whilst, not all submissions could be accommodated in this special issue, it nontheless marks a significant step toward addressing environmental matters in sport. The special issue covers a range of topics, including the response of sport governance to address environmental sustainability (Gammelsaeter & Loland, 2022;Hugaerts et al, 2022), climate adaptation (Dingle et al, 2022), stakeholder engagement (McCullough & Trail, 2022), and a review of environmental sustainability in sport (Cury et al, 2022). Cury et al (2022) open the special issue with a systematic review of literature that builds on prior reviews but bridges an important gap to identify the methodological and theoretical patterns of sport and the natural environment literature.…”

“…The special issue covers a range of topics, including the response of sport governance to address environmental sustainability (Gammelsaeter & Loland, 2022;Hugaerts et al, 2022), climate adaptation (Dingle et al, 2022), stakeholder engagement (McCullough & Trail, 2022), and a review of environmental sustainability in sport (Cury et al, 2022). Cury et al (2022) open the special issue with a systematic review of literature that builds on prior reviews but bridges an important gap to identify the methodological and theoretical patterns of sport and the natural environment literature. Their findings suggest that there is a balanced methodological approach which shows the richness and balance to understanding the study of sport and the natural environment because 'an over-reliance any one paradigm can skew how a construct or phenomenon is understood' (Cunningham & Sagas, 2008, p. 6).…”

“…This special issue responds to calls of prior researchers to advance the integration of environmental sustainability into sport research. These calls for additional academic investigations seek to draw upon the wealth of knowledge and theoretical perspectives already developed in sport managementmost pressingly to address the climate crisis (Cury et al, 2022). As the effects of climate change intensify (IPCC, 2022) and public opinions shift to encourage more action on behalf of governmental agencies, corporations, and non-governmental entities, transformative change towards a decarbonized society and economy is achievable.…”

The quest for sustainable sports management: evidence from the football industry

“…As a result, every football organization must maintain constant surveillance of both internal and external events, as well as crisis preparation and changes in global economic paradigms (Ludvigsen, 2022). In fact, the international urgency and complexity of environmental and social issues have been increasingly emphasizing these aspects, necessitating the adoption of a global perspective and research approaches that enable sport researchers and practitioners to collaborate closely on knowledge development (Cury et al ., 2023). More in details, the relation between sport and sustainability has recently raised a lot of interest among both academics and practitioners; yet, in the academic literature, very few studies have investigated which solutions are implemented in football, despite its popularity, to reduce the environmental impact of its events.…”

“…The popularity of sport can create opportunities to promote and influence individual behaviour change and drive organizational efforts to be environmentally sustainable. Yet, since it has been demonstrated that sport is not inherently sustainable or unsustainable, several call for papers (Breitbarth et al ., 2023; Cury et al ., 2023) are still encouraging sport researchers to critically assess existing practices and enhance the management knowledge that not only influences the world of sport and sport managers but also policy-makers and sport fans on mitigating the impacts of environmental and social issues worldwide.…”