The Object-Oriented Politics of Stadium Sustainability: A Case Study of SC Freiburg

Abstract

Sport stadia are political objects that carry an environmental cost. The purpose of this research is to add to previous literature by theorizing the political process of stadium construction in a way that accounts for how environmental issues are introduced into the political process and, therefore, offers a more accurate lens through which to interpret how sustainable stadia are constructed. We conducted a case study of SC Freiburg’s carbon-neutral stadium construction process to theorize the object-oriented politics of sport facility construction. SC Freiburg is a German football club, playing in the Bundesliga. To examine the case, we employed a key informant interview and document analysis using Nexis Uni searches, local newspaper articles, official city documents, and social media websites. The case study of SC Freiburg’s carbon neutral stadium construction process showed that environmental concerns were included through a political process that incorporated the interests of a diverse public of human and nonhuman actors (while excluding some actors whose interests could not be reconciled) to produce a sustainable matter of fact. Additionally, we propose a pragmatic definition of stadium sustainability and suggest that environmental activists should make sure that both human and nonhuman actors with sustainability concerns are included in the stadium’s material public.

Coaching With Latour in the Sociomateriality of Sport: A Cartography for Practice

“…In this study, nonhumans were just as important as humans in coaching practices. This is consistent with Bunds et al (2019) who argued that human and nonhuman involvement is intertwined. However, nonhumans are often nowhere to be seen in coaching research (Kerr, 2014).…”

Sustainable development between sports facilities and ecological environment based on the dual carbon background

“…This study suggests that the coupling coordination between the of sports facilitiesand the ecological environment is in uenced by economic and social factors. This is consistent with Kyle S. Bunds' viewpoint, who pointed out that using the example of Freiburg's carbon-neutral sports facilities, the sports facilitiescan bring environmental costs (Bunds et al, 2019).A practical de nition of the sustainability of sports facilitieswas proposed: sports facilitiesare sustainable when the public interests of the materials inside the sports facilities(primarily natural environmental bene ts, followed by economic and social bene ts) are harmonized. Therefore, the normative de nition of the sustainability of sports facilitiesimplies that all decisions related to sports facilitiesshould consider sustainability and its pillars (economic, social, and environmental).…”

Environmental Sustainability in Stadium Design and Construction: A Systematic Literature Review

“…The case of innovative shipping container stadium [33] Investigating alternative development strategies for sport arenas based on active and passive systems [34] Modern Stadium Design: an adaptive renovation or urban renewal. [35] Research on the Indoor Physical Characteristic of the Ceiling of China National Aquatics Center under the Demand of Olympic Games [15] Reusing Stadiums for a Greener Future: The Circular Design Potential of Football Architecture [36] Rwanda Cricket Stadium: Seismically stabilised tile vaults [37] The Object-Oriented Politics of Stadium Sustainability: A Case Study of SC Freiburg [38] Using Simulation-Based Modeling to Evaluate Light Trespass in the Design Stage of Sports Facilities [39] Water savings and reduction of costs through the use of a dual water supply system in a sports facility [40]…”

“…There is only one author definition available in the reviewed literature for 'sustainable stadiums.' This is a pragmatic definition of stadium sustainability stating that "a stadium is sustainable when the material public's environmental, social, and economic interests are reconciled in the stadium as a matter of fact" [38]. Other than this, one other paper describes sustainable use of sports venues as the reduction of damage caused to the natural and social environment while maximizing the efficient use of stadiums which can be achieved with the effective implementation of green development throughout the stadium life cycle from its site selection to post match operations [12].…”