The 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup promises to be the biggest tournament in history. Yet as the tournament expands, so does its environmental impact. In fact, it’s set to have the largest environmental footprint ever recorded for the event.
With 48 teams competing across 104 matches in three countries, the tournament will generate an estimated 9 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions. That’s nearly double that of the previous World Cup. [1]
FIFA has pledged carbon reduction and offsetting measures, but the tournament’s unprecedented scale raises a critical question: can the World Cup continue to grow without compromising global climate goals?
Here’s a look at the 2026 World Cup energy consumption and ideas for making future tournaments more sustainable.
Why the World Cup Energy Consumption Matters
The World Cup’s energy consumption, which is energy consumption FIFA must account for when planning and hosting the tournament, matters both locally and globally.
An event of this scale strains power grids and transportation systems and hampers progress toward global climate goals. The issue is not the event itself, but its scale, which magnifies its environmental footprint.
Environmental Impact of Major Sporting Events
Large sporting events like the World Cup are like pop-up cities. It requires infrastructure to support millions of fans, and you need significant amounts of electricity and fuel to make sure the event runs smoothly.
While the energy demand is short-term, it’s also massive. The environmental impact also doesn’t just disappear when the tournament ends. These events emit significant amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, making it even harder to meet our climate goals.
Trapped greenhouse gases then contribute to extreme weather, affecting ecosystems and increasing energy use. For example, hotter days mean more air conditioning and outages when electric grids get too strained.
The Scale of the 2026 Tournament in the U.S.
This year’s World Cup will be held across 16 cities in three countries—the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It’s also expanding from 32 nations competing to 48, and from 64 matches to 104.
The bigger the tournament and the more spread out it is, the more planes, buses, electricity, water, and fuel you need. Carbon offsets may help reduce the World Cup’s overall environmental impact, but they don’t address the immediate pressure on local power grids and fuel supplies.
And carbon offsetting only works if companies follow through on their long-term commitments, which they don’t always do. A better approach for major sporting events is to reduce overall energy use at sporting events rather than rely on offsets.
How Much Energy Will the 2026 World Cup Consume?
Conservative estimates indicate that the 2026 World Cup will generate approximately 9 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions. [1]
Why is the energy use so high? The answer might surprise you.
Stadium Power Requirements
Some of the total energy used for the 2026 World Cup is attributed to the stadiums themselves as a result of:
- Lighting: Field lighting, exterior security lighting, interior walkways inside the stadium
- Video boards and displays: Scoreboards, advertising screens, digital signs
- Security systems: Surveillance cameras, command centers
- Concessions and retail: Refrigeration, food storage, cooking equipment
- Back house operations: locker rooms and offices, data networks, maintenance systems.
For a typical game, there isn’t much stadium power usage overall. But when you’re dealing with an event with five million people from 200 countries, the numbers add up fast. [2][3]
Transportation and Fan Energy Use
The event’s greatest energy expenditure will come from travel and keeping people cool. With 104 matches spread across three countries, teams, officials, media, and fans have to travel long distances between host cities.
Flying is the most practical way to travel, but it also increases fuel consumption and emissions. It’s estimated that 85% of the 2026 World Cup’s emissions will result from international and domestic air travel. [1]
Then there’s the summer heat. Six of the 16 stadiums will likely experience extreme temperatures, so cooling systems are essential to prevent players and fans from overheating. Many of the 2026 World Cup USA stadiums’ plans include misting stations, air-conditioned concourses, and climate-controlled transit hubs.
Can the 2026 World Cup Be Sustainable?
With the 2026 World Cup less than six months away, there’s not much that can be done to make for a more eco-friendly World Cup beyond what’s already planned. For future tournaments, the changes with the greatest sustainability impact would include scaling back by hosting fewer host countries and scheduling more centrally located matches to reduce travel.
Still, FIFA and host stadiums have put sustainability measures in place for this year’s tournament. Here’s what they’re doing.
U.S. Stadiums Using Renewable Energy
Several U.S. Stadiums already use renewable energy through on-site solar panels. They also purchase renewable energy credits to offset their fossil fuel use or have long-term agreements to buy electricity from wind or solar projects.
These alternative energy sources help reduce reliance on fossil-fuel-based energy during events for lighting and other basic operations.
FIFA Sustainability Mandates & Local Policy Alignment
FIFA’s current sustainability and climate strategies for this year’s games include: [4]
- Developing a 2026 Sustainability and Human Rights Strategy framework that sets new benchmarks to guide current and future tournaments.
- Requiring all host stadiums to have environmental plans that contribute to the World Cup’s sustainability while benefiting local communities.
- Tracking and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions generated by the tournament.
- Encouraging host cities to develop their own environmental plans and use the event as a jumping point for positive change in the community.
- Using existing stadiums for all matches instead of constructing new ones.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much energy will the 2026 World Cup use?
The 2026 World Cup is expected to generate around 9 million tons of CO2, the highest amount of all World Cups ever recorded. [1] About 85% of the greenhouse gas emissions result from international and domestic travel.
Are any U.S. stadiums using renewable energy for the 2026 World Cup?
Yes, several sustainable stadiums are using renewable energy for the 2026 World Cup. The Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA, for example, features a fully retractable roof, 4,000 rooftop solar panels, and water-conservation technology. Seattle’s Lumen Field used LEDs for 98% of its lighting.
What sport has the highest carbon footprint?
There’s no one specific sport that has the highest carbon footprint. Generally, the carbon footprint depends on the event’s scale and amount of travel. International tournaments that draw global fans tend to generate more carbon emissions.
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Lessons from Past World Cups & What’s Next
The 2026 World Cup is doing more than past tournaments in terms of sustainability. For example, matches will be held in existing stadiums rather than in new ones. This makes better use of existing resources and generates fewer carbon emissions. Cities and venues have also been more conscientious about doing their part to reduce their environmental impact.
However, the tournament continues to grow in scale. With more countries hosting and teams playing, people are flying longer distances to attend. This has been the biggest contributor to the event’s environmental impact this year.
If FIFA wants to reduce the World Cup’s energy consumption, it’ll need to tackle these issues head-on and develop more comprehensive strategies that prioritize reducing greenhouse gas emissions and rely less on carbon offsetting.
Brought to you by justenergy.com
All images licensed from Adobe Stock.
Sources
1. New Weather Institute. “FIFA’s Climate Blind Spot: The men’s world cup in a warming world.” July 2025. https://www.newweather.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/FIFAs_climate_blind_spot.pdf
2. INSIDEFIFA. “FIFA World Cup 2026™ ticket demand breaks all records.” December 29, 2025. https://inside.fifa.com/organisation/media-releases/world-cup-2026-ticket-demand-breaks-all-records
3. FIFA. “500 days to go: excitement builds for FIFA World Cup 26.” January 27, 2025. https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/500-days-to-go-milestone-excitement-builds
4. INSIDEFIFA. “Introduction.” Accessed January 29, 2026. https://inside.fifa.com/tournament-organisation/world-cup-2026-sustainability-strategy/introduction
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