This would be a first in France in a professional team sport: the REC Volley teams (Men’s B League and Women’s Elite) are resolutely committed to the climate. This season, their players will wear “warming stripes” on their jerseys in order to mobilize against bad weather. “Our symbolic action (…) is anything but a simple communication strategy,” explains REC in a press release. “They will study possible improvements and determine the first steps to be taken. »
The “Warm Up Stripes” represent the evolution of average annual temperatures from 1850 to 2022 on their jerseys.
The club’s carbon footprint is far from negligible. “For men’s team matches, we can estimate emissions at more than 140 tCO2/year, with 2/3 due to spectator and player travel. » To fight emissions, players will become true climate ambassadors. “They will especially implement interventions in schools to raise awareness among young people about the actions that everyone can do, in everyday life and in sports. »
In a broader sense, RIK will implement collective actions. “For the men we have combined two meetings in the south of France (CNVB Montpellier 25.1.24 and Martigues 27.1.24) to carry one train. The gain is greater than 6 tCO2. Such calendar adjustments could be interesting for the authorities to generalize in the future. For the regular season, we decided to make only 3 plane trips instead of 5.
We will use the train as often as possible (25 times less impact than the plane)”
More or less in the long term, REC will challenge spectators: to travel by bike during match nights. “By tripling the number of users by the end of the year, we could reduce the overall effect by 10%. During the year, we will implement ticket price reductions for fans who come to tournaments by public transport, on foot, by bicycle or by shared transport. Climate action video messages and posters will be broadcast on match nights, including bus and metro timetables/cycling information. »
We will change the equipment manufacturer. Our jerseys and tracksuits will now be produced in Europe.
Let us remind you that the club did not start from scratch. He has already acquired two electric service bikes for the administrative staff, the players have a Keolis card. “Nothing will be done if everyone doesn’t mobilize,” explains Olivier Bouvet, coach of the men’s team. “We are happy to be the first French team, together in all sports, to embark on this adventure and play in the colors of the climate.” Same story with the president, Nathalie Guitton. “Sport is a fantastic lever for collective commitment. Our club was already committed to social goals, such as gender equality or promoting practices in priority areas of the city. I am proud to take a step further in the fight against climate change that affects us all. »
Info + : each meeting in Rennes emits about 8 tCO2. “The main items are the travel of 1,000 spectators (64%, or about 5 tCO2), the energy consumption of the sports hall and outbuildings (12%), digital equipment and video transcriptions (11%), restaurants and bars (6%). For 15 games a year (11 at home for the regular season + games), we have about 120 tCO2. This assessment remains partial, as it would be necessary to integrate other parameters, for example consumption during training. »
