The Green Action League Shows The Power Of Collective Fan Action

At the end of 2024, Ball Corporation and the four major sporting entities of the Kroenke Sports and Entertainment Group (KSE), the L.A. Rams, the Colorado Avalanche, the Denver Nuggets, and Arsenal FC launched the Green Action League, an inter-fanbase competition seeking to create environmentally sustainable behaviors among sports fans.

Fans from the four teams signed up on their respective team’s website and logged “green actions” to score points to win prizes and drive themselves and their team to the top of the Green Action League standings. Green actions were simple daily, weekly, or one-off activities that limited waste and improved environmental awareness, like unplugging unused appliances or hang-drying clothes. By the end of the three-week competition, over 123,000 green points were scored, with Arsenal fans scoring the most, 44,060 points.

According to Michael Ceilley, KSE Senior Vice President and General Manager, Partnership Marketing and Media Sales, the results of the campaign exceeded expectations. Ceilley said, “The number of green points scored and the level of engagement, especially from the Avalanche fans, were absolutely remarkable.” He also noted that while KSE “set ambitious goals, the fans went above and beyond, making this one of the most rewarding initiatives we’ve ever launched.”

In a demonstration of the emotional power of sports, “95% of participants said that playing for their team motivated them to adopt greener habits.” This was certainly the pull for Denver Nuggets fan Destiney Garcia and Colorado Avalanche fan Heather Schneider. Garcia decided to take part because of the opportunity to win court-side tickets to see the Nuggets. Schneider, a Zoologist working at a wildlife rehabilitation center, says participating in the Green Action League “was a no-brainer” because it combined two of her favorite things, “doing what I can to help the earth and Colorado Avalanche hockey.”

Garcia admits she only became conscious of climate change and environmental sustainability “in the last few years,” but says that her participation in the Green Action League has already changed her daily habits.

Garcia realized that there are simple habits every person can adjust to reduce their environmental impact. Before the campaign, she says could never remember to use a reusable cup or bring her reusable bags to the store. Now, she says “I never forget them,” and notes that she waits to run her dishwasher until it’s completely full at the end of the day.

Before participating in the Green Action League, Garcia never considered unplugging unused appliances or hang-drying clothes, but now she’s taken up these habits as a way of avoiding waste and reducing energy consumption. She’s not alone. According to the post-campaign data, “88% of participants said they learned more about sustainability through the campaign,” which Ceilley says “shows how powerful sport can be to help fight climate change.” Perhaps even more importantly, 95% of fans said “They plan to continue taking smaller sustainable actions long after the campaign ended.”

For Garcia, the most fun element of the competition was taking pictures of all her new habits. She says she remembers “getting some funny looks” when she was taking photos of herself recycling or buying plastic-free fruits and veggies, but says it’s definitely something she would do again.

Like Garcia, Schneider really enjoyed the campaign. As a hockey and nature lover, she enjoyed seeing her Avs offer fans the opportunity to create change and had fun participating in the campaign and encouraging friends and family to join in. She says it made her “extremely happy and hopeful for the future of our planet,” and noted that she “would definitely do it again,” in part because the contest “does good for the world” and “was extremely rewarding.”

The beauty of the campaign is that it effectively raised awareness about environmental sustainability and highlighted the power of collective action. As Ceilley notes, “94% of participating fans said this was the best sustainability campaign they’ve seen, which speaks volumes about the impact we made.”

Schneider and Garcia hope their teams continue to promote campaigns like these. Fans may go into these campaigns looking to win prizes, but they come out with newfound knowledge and perspective. Moreover, campaigns like the Green Action League help inspire fanbases to create change.

Ceilley says that moving forward the Nuggets and Avalanche may look into expanding in-arena activations because they allow further engagement with the community. They will also increase the frequency of campaign content emails and hope to have more partnerships with players like DeAndre Jordan who in his role as ambassador helped create content that spread the sustainability message to fans.

The success of this fan-driven campaign has demonstrated the importance of sports in driving meaningful participation. As Mike Kelley, Ball Corporation Director of Strategic Partnerships notes, “The Green Action League campaign demonstrated that fans are willing to take small, impactful actions, such as recycling aluminum cans and opting for plant-based meals, to support their teams and the environment.”

Fans can expect to see similar campaigns moving forward as Ball Corporation, the participating teams and the fans have all shown an appetite for more educational resources, more prizes, and more opportunities to engage with their community and create positive change.