Sports teams forced to battle toughest foe in climate change

THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

November 3,久保建英 2024 at 07:00 JST

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A J1 soccer match between the Urawa Reds and Kashiwa Reysol is canceled due to a thunderstorm at the Saitama Stadium on Aug. 7. (Provided by the J.League)

When Typhoon No. 10 made landfall on the Japanese archipelago in late August, public transportation systems were disrupted, forcing a range of professional sports contests to be called off. 

Members of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows and the Yomiuri Giants of professional baseball’s Central League were stuck and stranded in a Shinkansen.

An overseas basketball team coming to Japan for a B.League practice match was similarly affected during its travels. 

Four of the eight soccer matches in the J1 division in the Kansai and Tokai regions were canceled on Aug. 31.

However, a game between Sanfrecce Hiroshima and FC Tokyo took place but sparked a fierce debate over fairness as one team was forced to overcome transportation difficulties.

CLIMATE CHANGE A FORMIDABLE FOE

The culprit behind the difficulties is climate change, which is casting a shadow on pro sports circles.

A string of local torrential rain, thunderstorms and typhoons associated with rainstorms over a wide area have rendered it increasingly difficult to hold matches as scheduled.

Even soccer is no exception although matches can usually be played in the rain.

Organizers are more frequently forced to make difficult decisions on whether to cancel matches, and one such judgment call recently drew controversy.

One of the J1 contests that was not called off during Typhoon No. 10 saw Sanfrecce Hiroshima hosting FC Tokyo.

The FC Tokyo team set off for Hiroshima Prefecture by Shinkansen on Aug. 29, two days before the match. But heavy rain left the players with no choice but to wait for many hours aboard a bullet train around Shin-Fuji Station in Shizuoka Prefecture.

The team ended up staying overnight at accommodations in Shizuoka Prefecture that day. It returned to Tokyo by bus the following day on Aug. 30.

Switching to air travel, FC Tokyo eventually reached Hiroshima Prefecture on Aug. 31, the very day of the match, through an airport in a nearby prefecture.

According to insiders, FC Tokyo’s members complained that they were not given an opportunity to exercise their bodies a day before the match. One of the players asked “who will compensate me if I suffer an injury” in the game due to the lack of preparation. 

After Sanfrecce Hiroshima had won 3-2, FC Tokyo announced that it had submitted a written complaint to the J.League on Sept. 5.

Calling for a “certain level of fairness to be ensured,” FC Tokyo demanded that the J.League develop much clearer criteria for judgments on whether to proceed with games in the event of natural disasters like this one.

The J.League has since been discussing the issue. But there are limitations to forecasting mass transport operations beforehand, given that weather conditions can rapidly change depending on typhoons’ routes as well as the movements of rain clouds and fronts.

“Realistically, all we can do is to make a comprehensive decision on a case-by-case basis, taking the circumstance into account,” lamented a J.League insider.

The J.League is increasingly alarmed by the growing risk of match cancellations over the course of the past few years, as the uncertainty surrounding climate change increases year after year.

The pro soccer organizer released data on its official games called off due to torrential rain in April this year. The figures show that, on average, only 2.0 matches were canceled annually up until 2017, but 9.5 games were called off each year between 2018 and 2023.

This year, nine games have already been canceled due to thunderstorms or typhoons. One match was delayed in starting, while another was temporarily suspended to ensure the safety of spectators and athletes.

Canceled games need to be rescheduled on alternative dates. But the process is not easy owing to difficulty in securing stadiums, posing another source of concern for officials at the J.League and club teams competing there.

ECO-FRIENDLY APPROACHES

The sports community is seeking ways to mitigate climate change.

The J.League started its full-fledged initiative for environmental protection under its Climate Action program in 2023. The dedicated Sustainability Department was put in place as well.

“Efforts made within five to six years will turn out to be critically important, so that an environment can be preserved where we can do sports 50 years in the future,” stated Takayuki Tsujii, an executive officer of the J.League, who is in charge of environmental sustainability.

An estimate reveals that 4,300 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) were emitted in connection with 1,220 matches last fiscal year. The J.League is looking to halve the emissions by 2030 through its transition to renewable energy and by other means.

Though annual CO2 emissions from the entire sports industry are believed to account for less than 0.1 percent of Japan’s total 1.1 billion tons, Tsujii stressed the unique advantage of the entertainment business.

“Sports can reach out to a range of individuals as our supporters and sponsors belong to various businesses and industries,” explained Tsujii, adding that the J.League’s initiative has gradually been gaining people’s understanding.

The league operator is not alone in working with fans and other stakeholders.

Shinji Ono, a former national team member, provides opportunities for children and parents who participate in his soccer classes at game sites nationwide to discuss global warming.

Clubs are likewise forging ahead with their respective tactics on a trial basis. Mito Hollyhock in the J2 division plans to utilize solar-generated electricity for sales and agricultural purposes, while J3’s FC Osaka collaborates with a regional company as part of activities to realize a decarbonized society.

Tsujii emphasized that a succession of successful cases will help the J.League to spread its efforts not only among club teams throughout the nation but also outside soccer circles and the entire sports industry at some point.

“It is important to build a framework that naturally leads people to participating in ecological movements, rather than relying on individual awareness,” he said.

(This article was written by Takeru Fujiki and Takeshi Teruya.)