Making major sports events more sustainable

Major sports events bring people together, inspire communities and create economic opportunities. At the same time, they have a significant environmental footprint, particularly through visitor mobility, energy use, materials and food.

The Dutch Accelerator Programme for Sustainable and Circular Elite Sports Events brings together government organisations, sports federations, event organisers, venues and businesses to accelerate the transition towards more sustainable and circular sports events in the Netherlands.

The programme focuses on five key areas: mobility, energy, water, materials and food. Through collaboration, knowledge sharing and practical pilot projects, participating organisations develop and test solutions that can be adopted more widely across the sports sector.

From ambition to implementation

Green Wave has been responsible for the programme management since its launch in 2023, working closely with the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS), the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management (I&W), and partners including NOC*NSF, the Association of Sports and Municipalities (VSG), sports federations and major event organisers.

Our role includes developing the programme strategy, coordinating stakeholders, building partnerships and translating shared ambitions into concrete initiatives.

By connecting policy, innovation and real-world sports events, the programme helps turn sustainability ambitions into practical improvements and long-term sector-wide collaboration.

Green Wave's role: Programme development, programme management, stakeholder engagement and public-private partnerships.