Liverpool Deliver Off-the-Pitch Success with Sustainability

It’s been quite the year for Liverpool Football Club.

The Reds have been by far and away the best football team in England this season, leading the Premier League since November 2024 and playing with an imperiousness that has left title rivals Arsenal and Manchester City in the team’s wake.

But clinching its 20th title hasn’t been the only triumph at Anfield this year—the club has also recorded some huge successes in sustainability.

Liverpool Football Club has just published its third annual ‘Red Way’ sustainability report, showcasing impressive progress against its ambitious ESG targets.

“Liverpool Football Club has a lot to be proud of on the pitch this season. But some of its most meaningful progress is happening off it,” says James Rigby, who contributed to the Red Way report.

“The Red Way is LFC’s long-term sustainability strategy. A commitment to building a better future for people, planet and communities,” he says.

“It’s one of the clearest examples of how sustainability, when done well, drives commercial success.”

Sustainable success for Liverpool Football Club

The Premier League club reduced its overall carbon emissions by 12.5% compared to the previous season and achieved a 15% reduction from its 2019-20 baseline.

This improvement stems from several key initiatives, including sourcing 96% of energy from renewable or low-carbon sources across all club facilities.

The club has also tackled travel emissions, eliminating 100% of carbon emissions from domestic team flights through investment in sustainable aviation fuel.

"Understanding the impact that we do – and can – have is critical if we are to continue to succeed, on and off the pitch," says Jonathan Bamber, LFC's Chief Legal & External Affairs Officer and Executive Sponsor of The Red Way.

Recognition from the football and sustainability communities

The 2023-24 season saw Liverpool's sustainability efforts receive significant recognition with nine major awards.

These included Front Office Sports' Most Sustainable in Sport award and the Sports Industry Awards accolade for Environmental Sustainability.

Liverpool remains the first Premier League club to achieve ISO20121 certification for sustainability management and maintains additional certifications for health, safety and energy management.

The club's groundskeeping team has furthered biodiversity efforts by planting more than 1,000 trees and hedges while installing honeybee colonies that now total 60,000 bees across all sites.

Even the legendary Anfield pitch is now fully recyclable, with materials repurposed for benches at the club's new orchard.

The club’s community engagement

Under its people pillar, the club expanded its equality and inclusion initiatives, hosting its first ever iftar event at Anfield where more than 2,800 people broke fast together during Ramadan.

The club's official charity, LFC Foundation, supported more than 127,000 people last season with 60% of participants coming from the most-deprived areas of the country.

The Foundation delivered a social return of US$16.78 for every US$1.22 spent on community programmes.

"The Red Way is more than a strategy – it's a key priority for the club and is embedded into every aspect of the business," says Rishi Jain, the club’s Director of Impact.

Liverpool’s global leadership

Liverpool has established itself as a thought leader in sustainability, participating in 24 international events throughout the 2023-24 season.

These engagements included representation at COP28 and the UN's Global Eradicate Hate Summit.

The club has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040 as part of its long-term environmental strategy.

"We have set ambitious targets, including achieving net zero by 2040, and we understand that we are on a journey and there is still much more to do," Jonathan explains.

The Red Way strategy, launched in 2021, aligns with 16 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

This framework demonstrates Liverpool's commitment to driving positive change through governance, innovation and strategic action both locally and globally.

The club's sustainability journey continues to evolve as it balances sporting excellence with environmental and social responsibility.

It takes just as much togetherness, spirit and teamwork to deliver sustainable success as it does to win the Premier League, something which Rishi is eager to point out.

“The success of The Red Way and our wider sustainability commitments are very much down to the work of so many colleagues across the club, who embrace their responsibilities in this important area every day,” he says.

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