Footballers haven’t traditionally been associated with addressing the major issues facing the planet. But since the commendable work from Marcus Rashford around hunger and the solidarity behind the “taking the knee” movement, their image is changing. Now climate change is also on the agenda, too. A new Sky Sports documentary is looking at the impact it has on football, as well as how the game’s governing bodies, clubs, managers, and players are reacting to it. WhichEV talked to David Garrido, the Sky Sports presenter behind the documentary, about how it tackles the issue and how both Sky and footballers are addressing climate change, as well as his relationship with EV pioneer Polestar.
Q: Tells us about your documentary…
We're really excited about this – it's called “Football's Toughest Opponent”, and it looks at the complex relationship between the beautiful game and the climate crisis: how football is affected by climate change, how it contributes to its own carbon footprint, and what it's doing to make a positive difference and slam the brakes on the climate emergency.
We've spoken to so many contributors at every level of the game, from top players, managers, chair people, to people working at the grassroots of the sport, and I'm thrilled to be presenting it. We really hope the doc can give a decent 360-degree look at the issues within an hour, while also giving people hope that football can absolutely play its part in helping build an environmentally healthier future. If it can convince just one football fan watching to positive change their behaviour, adopt a more low-carbon lifestyle, then it will have been worth it. It airs on Sky Sports Premier League at 7.30pm on Sunday 9th October.
Q: What is the EV provision at Sky with Sky Engineers?
It's a pretty decent one, I have to say. A couple of years ago, Sky made its first big commitment in turning its fleet green by adding 151 electric vehicles for Sky Engineers to use. We got in some Ford Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vans which have a zero-emission range of 35 miles while operating with a full load and carrying the ladders required for most installations. They deliver a CO2 reduction of 90g/km, so that's a CO2 saving of 60%, and they also feature geofencing technology that automatically modifies a vehicle's settings based on its location, enabling it to switch into electric-only mode within urban and low emission areas. It's part of our ambition to transition our fleet of more than 5,000 vehicles to zero emissions over the next eight years, and we're also helping our 11,000 suppliers on their path to net zero.
Q: Does Sky have EV charging bays and salary sacrifice deals etc for staff?
Yes, we're pretty strong on this too – not only has Sky Sports already moved 50% of its pool car fleet to electric vehicles that we can use (and indeed I did use a Kia e-Niro for a climate action takeover day on Sky Sports News last July – it was my first experience of an EV!), but they also make sure that people with their own EVs have plenty of bays to use. And for those people who have never driven electric but wanted to give it a go, they even held a test drive day late last month.
The next stage is our Drive Zero scheme which is a government salary sacrifice scheme to allow people to lease electric cars for less, and you can sign up for 24, 30 or 36 months. On top of that, for our free shuttle bus services from various public transport hubs to our Livingston Campus near Edinburgh and our Osterley Campus in London, we have just brought in eight new British-built BYD ADL Enviro200EV electric single-deckers to replace the conventional ICE vehicles.
Q: Of sports people, what is the awareness of EVs? Are there any major EV evangelists in the sporting world you have worked with?
I think the general perception is that footballers in particular drive gas guzzlers like a Bentley or a Land Rover, but there are a few that are very passionate about electric vehicles and awareness is certainly growing. In the Premier League, I've recently been chatting to Brentford centre-back Ben Mee who went electric when he realised how much he was driving to and from training while at Burnley, and therefore how big his carbon footprint was through travel, so he and his partner both went electric. Ben Foster, who used to be goalkeeper for Watford, West Brom, Manchester United and England is another who has an EV. And most of Bayern Munich’s players have been driving all-electric with Audi e-tron for the last couple of years, and they've got charging stations in the underground car park at the training ground. Of course, there are sports personalities in motorsport who have been banging the EV drum for some time, such as Formula E driver Lucas di Grassi and 2016 Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg.
Q: Tell us about your recent deal with Polestar? What does that entail? How do you champion Polestar?
It's a really natural fit for everyone involved. Polestar has very kindly given me a lease vehicle (it's a Polestar 2 with some of the packs added on) and I try and spread the word to create conversation around what they're doing. Sometimes I'm posting on social media because there are announcements happening (e.g. the concept cars like the Precept and the O2 becoming production models 5 and 6 in the future, or cool partnerships they have launched such as with Candela, a Swedish hydrofoil electric boat company), other times it's because there's something I want to say about my experiences as a new EV driver. Recently, for World EV Day on 29th September, I told my audience about 3 myths about electric vehicles that I wanted to debunk – on cost, range and environmental impact. I'm soon going over to Copenhagen with Polestar for the global premiere for the Polestar 3, the company’s new electric SUV, on Wednesday 12th October – and Polestar is also opening a new Polestar Space in Battersea on Friday 14th October. These are all super cool things, and it's great to be part of them.
One amazing experience I’ve enjoyed already so far through this partnership was attending the Goodwood Festival of Speed as a guest of Polestar and doing the iconic Hillclimb in a Polestar 2, riding alongside race driver Ash Miller. It was a thrilling experience, definitely on the bucket list, although admittedly at slightly higher speeds than I take my Polestar 2 when driving around Woking where I live or Brentford where I work!
Q: What does the Polestar partnership represent in an overall drive for sustainability?
Well this is one of the biggest incentives for me to be involved with Polestar – it's not just the design, the technology and the performance, but it's also how sustainable they are. That's not just reflected in the cars themselves, how they're designed and built, the incredible features they have such as use of vegan materials or pushing for greater circularity, but also Polestar's attitude to sustainability as a company.
It's about trying to corral those around us to embark on this journey too, and we have to use our voice because we're in the decade of action, and we know that if we don't act now, we will go beyond a point of no return in terms of the health of our planet. I'm hoping I can really help amplify that message, because I obviously do a huge amount of work in this space through Sky Sports and on my own platforms, and climate action is so very important to me. It's brilliant to find a company who see this topic and issue just like I do.