The World Cup Sustainability Debate Is No Longer about Carbon - It’s about Access

Sustainability is Becoming a Social Issue

Traditionally, sustainability in mega-events has been framed through environmental metrics - carbon emissions, waste management, energy consumption.
These dimensions remain critical, particularly as the 2026 World Cup expands across host countries, increases travel flows and heightens exposure to climate risks.

Yet social conversations suggest a broader redefinition is underway. In fact, 46% of ESG-related World Cup conversations mention social inclusion, highlighting the growing importance of who benefits from - and who can participate in - the tournament experience.

Concerns around economic inequality and exclusionary pricing increasingly sit alongside environmental considerations.
Sustainability is increasingly judged not only through environmental performance, but through whether it is experienced as inclusive in practice.

The Adoption Challenge

This mirrors a broader trend observed in Ipsos’ People and Climate Change 2026 report, where climate concern remains high but expectations are shifting. Across 31 countries, a majority still believe governments and businesses should do more to tackle climate change, while responsibility is increasingly moving away from individuals. At the same time, support for climate action is becoming more conditional on affordability, reliability and cost-of-living pressures.

Public concern for environmental issues remains strong, but the capacity to act is increasingly constrained by affordability, convenience and access.
The same dynamic is visible in the World Cup context.

The challenge is no longer simply designing sustainable initiatives. It is designing experiences people can actually take part in:

• A renewable energy-powered stadium is meaningful - but so is whether fans can realistically reach it.
• A waste reduction program is important. But so is whether host communities perceive tangible benefits from the event.
   

A Sustainability Strategy only Creates Impact if People Can Engage with It.

Legacy Is Becoming the Real Measure of Success

One of the most consistent signals in social conversation is the growing focus on legacy. Increasingly, discussions are not centered on what happens during the tournament. They are centered on what remains after it.

Key questions include:

• Will infrastructure benefit local communities?
• Will public spaces be improved?
• Will economic gains stay within host cities?
• Will sustainability investments create lasting value?

This reflects a broader shift in ESG expectations.
Up-front commitments alone are no longer sufficient. Nor is delivery during the event. What matters is evidence of lasting impact.
In this context, the most effective sustainability initiatives may be those that become invisible over time - because they are embedded into infrastructure, communities and everyday life.
 

Implications for Brands and Sponsors

For brands investing in World Cup sponsorship, the shifting conversation around accessibility introduces a new layer of reputational complexity. Traditionally, sponsorship value has been built on global reach, emotional association and visibility within a unifying cultural moment. However, social listening suggests that perceptions of exclusion risk reshaping how value is interpreted.

Three implications stand out:

1. Sensitivity to affordability narratives: Association with the event requires awareness of most concerns. Brands may be perceived not only as supporters of sport, but as participants in a system associated with rising costs and exclusivity.
2. Premium activation risks: Activation strategies that emphasize premium experiences may reinforce perceptions of segmentation, particularly if they appear disconnected from broader fan accessibility concerns.
3. Contribution beyond visibility: there’s a growing expectation that sponsors demonstrate contribution beyond visibility -particularly in relation to inclusion, community access, and local benefit.

In this context, sponsorship effectiveness is no longer defined only by exposure or engagement. It is increasingly shaped by alignment with perceived fairness of access.
 

The Future of Sustainable Mega-Events

The 2026 World Cup is one of the largest sporting events ever organized. It is also becoming a live test case for how sustainability expectations are evolving. The social conversation suggests that success will not be measured solely through carbon accounting, renewable energy targets or waste diversion rates.

It will also be measured through:

• Access
• inclusion.
• Trust.
• Community benefit;
• And the ability to demonstrate that sustainability enhances the experience rather than restricting it.

The lesson extends beyond sport.

Across climate action, circularity, packaging and large-scale events, the challenge is increasingly consistent: Not “How do we make something sustainable?” But “How do we make sustainability work for people?”

Because ultimately, the success of sustainability will not be measured only by what organizations build. It will be measured by who gets to participate. 

*This opinion piece was created using global social media conversations collected since 1st January 2026, in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and German, using Ipsos’ in-house social intelligence platform, Ipsos Synthesio, and Ipsos’ People and Climate Change 2026 report.

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