About this episode

Oli Gibson discusses the impact of climate change on grassroots football and the challenges faced by local clubs.

In this story we meet Oli Gibson, a volunteer coach at Ringmer Football Club near Brighton, where three generations of his family are involved in the club. We visited Ringmer’s ground to talk about football’s place at the heart of local communities, and how climate change is beginning to reshape the game from the grassroots upwards. In his day job, Oli is a heat and performance researcher at Brunel University, so we discuss the challenges facing both artificial and natural pitches, from synthetic surfaces that can reach temperatures of 70°C to the increasing pressure on grass pitches during longer periods of heat and drought. Drawing comparisons between the resources available in the professional game and the realities of grassroots football, and reflecting on the current World Cup - set to be the hottest on record - Oli also considers why climate change is still not being properly addressed in football’s biggest conversations, and what it will take for the sport to adapt as extreme heat becomes an increasingly familiar part of the season.

People in this episode

Guest: Oli Gibson

Topics covered

• grassroots football
• climate change
• community
• sports adaptation
• heat challenges

Keywords

• grassroots football
• climate change
• Oli Gibson
• Ringmer Football Club
• heat challenges
• World Cup

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Ringmer Football Club, Brunel University

Places: Brighton

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