Manchester United embarrassed by Liverpool as Red Devils are far from green giants | OneFootball

Three wins on the bounce under the interim stewardship of Michael Carrick have raised spirits inside Old Trafford of late. Yet hardened Manchester United fans will be regarding their recent rise with extreme caution, given the club’s habit of brief revivals followed by long, grinding reminders that the problems run far deeper than a promising run of results.

On the pitch, optimism has become a fragile, short-term currency. Off it, the same pattern holds true – flashes of progress masking a broader sense that United are still struggling to modernise at the pace demanded by the modern game, whether that’s in recruitment, governance or, increasingly, sustainability.

For a football club whose brand is built on global reach and historical dominance, United’s environmental sustainability record reads more like a cautious compliance exercise than a statement of leadership.

Across elite football and the Premier League in particular, sustainability has moved from benign corporate social responsibility into strategic priority, with clubs setting ambitious carbon reduction targets, embedding environmental governance and publicly reporting progress.

In contrast, United’s environmental performance – long present on paper but limited in ambition – now risks making the club appear a follower rather than a leader in one of the defining challenges of the modern age.

Manchester United’s environmental journey formally dates back well over a decade. The club’s Environment, Energy & Carbon Reduction Programme is longstanding, and United’s environmental management system has been certified to the ISO 14001 standard, reflecting a structured approach to continual improvement across operations.

United also maintain a zero waste to landfill policy and reported that a significant portion of their waste – hundreds of tonnes – is recycled or diverted to energy recovery annually, alongside food waste being processed into biogas and reused where possible. United engage with local conservation groups for biodiversity efforts at their Carrington training centre and operate renewable energy measures, including heat pumps and biofuel use for match-day generators and grounds-keeping equipment.

Sport Positive Leagues records show that between April 2022 and March 2023 over half of United’s energy came from renewable sources, and the club’s Carbon Trust Standard has been maintained through at least 14 years of year-on-year carbon reduction goals.

Yet in 2026, that résumé – while positive – looks decidedly modest compared with many of United’s rivals, both within England and across Europe.

The crucial difference lies not in isolated initiatives but in structural targets, transparency and overarching strategy. Although United have laid early groundwork on developing a net-zero strategy, Sport Positive Leagues notes that definitive net-zero targets, milestones and a formal governance framework are still under development, rather than already established and publicly reported. In other words, United are planning their ambition rather than executing it on a measurable, timebound basis.

That contrast is most apparent when you look at clubs such as Liverpool. Since launching The Red Way strategy in 2021, Liverpool have embedded environmental and social impact deeply within its operations. The Red Way sets clear goals – including a 50 per cent reduction in absolute emissions by 2030 and achieving net-zero by 2040 – with detailed inventories covering Scope 1, 2 and 3 travel emissions.

In 2023-24, Liverpool reported cutting total emissions and using 96 per cent renewable or low-carbon energy across club sites, investing in Sustainable Aviation Fuel to eliminate emissions from some domestic flights and utilising low-carbon biofuel for team buses. Liverpool’s progress has also been recognised with independent awards, including the Transformation category at the 2025 Sport Positive Summit, underscoring the breadth and depth of their sustainability commitment.

Manchester City offer another stark comparison. City’s 2024-25 sustainability reporting outlines tangible results: 25 per cent reduction in CO₂ emissions across the year, Scope 1 and 2 operations carbon-neutral, over one megawatt of solar generation on-site, significant water use reduction and expanded sustainable transport options for fans. Crucially, City have publicly committed to achieving net carbon-zero by 2030, a clear, relatively near-term target that drives investment and reporting.

Even outside the top two Manchester clubs, peers are stepping up. Tottenham Hotspur became the first Premier League club to join the UN-backed Sports for Nature Framework, bolstering biodiversity protection and pledging to halve emissions by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2040. Independent sustainability rankings for 2025-26 place Brighton & Hove Albion as the greenest Premier League club overall, based on factors such as renewable energy use, waste diversion, water reuse and local engagement.

Part of United’s catch-up problem reflects the club’s relative lack of transparent, clearly reported metrics and verified targets. Independent benchmarking, such as Premier League sustainability assessments, consistently rank United in the middle or lower tiers among the 20 clubs, largely due to limited disclosures and absence of formal net-zero timelines. While United’s ISO certification and long-running reduction programme demonstrate commitment, they lack the strategic framing around science-aligned, independently verified goals that others now publish.

Operational emissions data – whether analysed through third-party assessments or club reporting – also highlights the scale of the task. Analysis suggests that the so-called “Big Six” clubs collectively account for a majority of the Premier League’s carbon emissions, with United often registering among the largest contributors due to the sheer scale of their facilities and activities, including matchday operations, training and support travel. Such findings reinforce how central the Red Devils are to the league’s environmental footprint and why their leadership on reduction strategies matters – not just for their own sustainability but for the league’s collective progress.

So what would it take for United to modernise from an environmental perspective? The most immediate step would be formalising and publishing a robust net-zero strategy, complete with science-based targets, interim milestones and regular third-party verification. This should cover not only operational emissions (Scope 1 and 2) but also Scope 3 emissions, including travel and supply-chain impacts, which represent the largest portion of most football clubs’ footprints.

Regular sustainability reporting – in line with frameworks such as the UN Sports for Climate Action or Science Based Targets initiative – would vastly increase transparency and accountability. Intensifying investment in on-site renewable energy generation, sustainable transport infrastructure for fans and staff, and fan engagement programmes on travel choices would further align United with best practice.

Embedding sustainability at executive board level – giving dedicated leadership authority and resources – would signal a shift from compliance-oriented action to strategic ambition. Ultimately, for a club with one of the world’s largest fanbases and richest brands, sustainability isn’t just a niche CSR endeavour: it’s part of safeguarding the institution’s future in a world where environmental performance increasingly informs reputations, commercial partnerships and fan loyalty.

Manchester United’s sustainability story has thus far been one of legacy process rather than bold transformation – an ethos that has also seen them tread water on the pitch for more than a decade. The next era demands vision, measured progress and a willingness to compete off the pitch with the same intensity displayed on it. In that race, the Red Devils can no longer afford to lag behind the league’s green giants.