The scudetto (of sustainability) was won by Udinese

Yesterday evening I was in Udine, where two championships were being awarded. The first, that of the field and sport, was won by Napoli. But this year for the first time there was a second championship up for grabsand Udinese won that: it’s the championship for sustainability.

The Report on all European clubs it was published some time ago and the verdict is clear: the most sustainable club in Europe is Liverpool, ahead of Real Madrid and Real Betis; Udinese is fourth overall, the other Italian team in the top ten is Milan, in eighth place. This result, which sees the Premier League overall as the best leaguetakes into account all aspects of sustainability, and therefore the social and financial one alongside the environmental one.

But if we look only at the environmental impact, Udinese is even third overall (behind the Germans in Freiburg and the French in Reims). How is it possible? The answers in the Report are clear: the home stadium, the Dacia Arena, thanks to the partnership with Blue Energy, is powered by renewable energy and this makes it one of the very few carbon neutral European stadiums, i.e. with zero emissions. And the game uniforms, made by Macron, are all made using recycled materials (13 plastic bottles are used for each shirt). Just two examples of a precise strategy that will soon lead to the stadium becoming an energy community with solar panels on the roof while UEFA has chosen Udinese to experiment with a total circular economy model, eliminating the very idea of ​​waste. If it works here, everyone will.

But there is one thing that the Report does not say: behind these choices there are those who believed in them. It’s about the Pozzo family, who have been running the club for 38 years: first the father Vittorio and now the daughter Magda. Yesterday they were talking about the commitment to football sustainability as a mission, and it’s right. But it’s time to tell it also as an opportunity: a more environmentally friendly football is a better football that can send a formidable message to the fans. And therefore: congratulations to Napoli, but also congratulations to Udinese.