‘Absurd’: Greenpeace Calls Out Winter Olympics Sponsorship With Fossil Fuel Giant Eni

“Oil & gas like Eni drive the climate crisis, then sponsor the Winter Olympics & Paralympics to greenwash their image,” Greenpeace Italy said.

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Greenpeace Italy has urged the organizers of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy’s Alps to end their “absurd” partnership with Italian oil and gas giant Eni.

As one of the world’s largest contributors to planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, Eni has been accused of using the event to greenwash its image while playing a key role in driving the climate crisis.

“The Olympic values of respect for people and the environment matter, that’s why Greenpeace is calling for the International Olympic Committee to drop oil and gas sponsorship from the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games and commit to ending fossil fuel sponsorship across all Olympic Games,” said Greenpeace Italy’s climate campaigner Federico Spadini.

Fossil fuel companies are the primary drivers of global warming, which has pushed temperatures to record levels in recent years. Studies have linked emissions from major oil and gas companies to severe climate impacts, including deadly heatwaves.

Among the industries affected by global warming are winter sports, which now face declining natural snowfall and shorter winter seasons. This has led to an increased reliance on artificial snow, a costly and unsustainable process that requires vast amounts of water and energy, placing significant strain on local ecosystems.

The impact of rising temperatures is particularly acute in the European Alps, where temperatures are increasing faster than in most other regions. Here, 90% of ski slopes in Italy now rely on artificial snow, and experts estimate that maintaining Alpine pistes annually consumes as much water as a city of one million people. Meanwhile, data collected by the non-profit environmental group Legambiente last year revealed that Italy has lost 265 ski resorts to rising temperatures.

“Oil & gas like Eni drive the climate crisis, then sponsor the Winter Olympics & Paralympics to greenwash their image,” the environmental organization said in a video published Tuesday on its YouTube channel.

However, Eni is not alone in this practice. A 2023 study by campaign group Badvertising and think-tank New Weather Sweden revealed how major polluters back snow sports despite being responsible for the industry’s collapse. 

The study identified a total of 107 high-carbon sponsorship deals with skiing organisations, event organisers, teams, and individual athletes. 83 deals were led by car manufacturers, 54 of which involved German company Audi, a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG. Fossil fuel companies signed 12 deals while airlines were behind five.

“Through their pollution, high-carbon sponsors of winter sports are melting the future of the very sports they sponsor. With their clean, healthy outdoor image, winter sports are especially attractive to sponsorship from major polluters who want to ‘sportwash’ their image,” the report read.

‘Missed Opportunity’

Greenpeace is not alone in its criticism. On Monday, Legambiente called the upcoming Winter Olympics “missed a great opportunity for sustainability.” The organization accused event organizers of ignoring both environmental and economic sustainability and failing to address the Alpine region’s climate vulnerabilities. Instead, they prioritized controversial projects such as a new bobsleigh track and extensive road infrastructure over more sustainable investments in railway systems.

“In a region as vulnerable and subject to the effects of the climate crisis as the Alpine region, we need to focus on a new land management model based on climate adaptation, sustainable tourism, and innovation,” Legambiente said.

Winter Olympics At Risk

Rising global temperatures are putting the future of the Winter Olympics in jeopardy. Unreliable snowfall and shorter winters are making outdoor competition increasingly difficult, drastically reducing the number of potential host locations. The International Olympic Committee has warned that only 10 countries may still have the right climate to host the Games by 2040.

Greenpeace estimates that “over half of suitable locations will be unable to host the Winter Olympics” by 2080, and one study predicts that if current pollution trends continue, only one of the 21 cities that hosted the Games in the past century will have a climate suitable for winter sports by 2100.

The warning signs are already evident. The 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing were the first to rely entirely on artificial snow. Similarly, the Milano Cortina Olympics organizing committee said it has produced nearly 1.6 million cubic metres of manufactured snow for all its venues in light of declining snow levels, Euronews reported.

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