How Football (soccer!) Plans to Adapt to a Hotter World
In episode 255 of America Adapts, host Doug Parsons speaks with Elliot Arthur-Worsop, founder and director of Football for Future, about how the world’s most popular sport can become a powerful platform for climate adaptation and communication. Elliot shares how his organization is engaging clubs, players, governing bodies, and fans while expanding the football climate conversation beyond sustainability and emissions. Doug and Elliot discuss Football for Future’s Pitches in Peril report, which examines climate risks facing 2026 FIFA World Cup host cities and stadiums across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, including extreme heat, flooding, risks to players and fans, adaptation funding, and how major sporting events can leave behind a resilience legacy. They also explore whether global sporting events can help unlock new sources of funding for resilience. Elliot argues that “politics follows culture,” leading to a broader conversation about adaptation’s communications challenge and what the resilience community can learn from football about storytelling, influence, marketing, and reaching audiences far beyond the traditional climate space.
FIFA World Cup
Transcript for this episode.
Links in this episode:
https://footballforfuture.org/pitchesinperil
The Future of Adaptation Funds in Global Sport
Key Themes Covered in This Episode
The World's Most Popular Sport Meets Climate Change
The 2026 World Cup as a Climate Stress Test
Football's Role in Climate Communication
Funding Climate Adaptation Through Sport
Extreme Heat and the Future of Outdoor Sports
Reaching Billions Through Culture and Storytelling
Creating a Resilience Legacy Beyond the Tournament
For Educators & StudentsClimate Change and the World's Most Popular Sport
The 2026 FIFA World Cup as a Climate Stress Test
Extreme Heat, Stadium Resilience, and Athlete Safety
Adaptation Finance and New Funding Models
Climate Communication Beyond Traditional Audiences
Why Politics Follows Culture
Using Sports to Make Climate Adaptation Visible and Relevant
Who Should Listen to This Episode
Anyone curious about how climate change is affecting the world's most popular sport
Climate adaptation and resilience professionals
Sports executives, sustainability managers, and event organizers
Climate communicators, journalists, and storytellers
Students and educators interested in adaptation and public engagement
Funders exploring new approaches to climate resilience
Fans wondering what climate change means for the future of football
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