Professional athletes consistently sport fresh, trendy attire and gear for every game they play, influencing millions of fans worldwide to follow suit by purchasing new jerseys adorned with the names of their favorite players. Huge companies such as adidas or Nike sponsor teams and individual athletes and give them heaps of new branded apparel and equipment. Professional teams such as NHL and NFL require loads of equipment and items lasting no more than a year. Jerseys are often treated as single use, disposing of them after each game. Sometimes jerseys don’t even last the entire game as players switch to new ones during halftime.

At its current pace, the fashion industry’s emissions are projected to double within the next decade. With these alarming statistics, it would seem ridiculous to discard an article of clothing after one use. So why is it ok and encouraged for professional athletes? This overconsumption is extremely unnecessary and can be easily avoided. Fans fail to realize how wasteful these practices are as they are blinded by the affluence and luxury of the major sport organizations. Organizations, such as the NHL and companies, such as Vanavero, have already proven that they are able to create more sustainable solutions,. Yet, despite having the resources to make professional sports apparel more sustainable, they opt to continue with wasteful practices. While this is partly due to the reluctance of sports organization officials, it’s worth noting that these organizations haven’t encountered significant pushback from the millions of fans, who are largely unaware of these concerns. Given the colossal scale of the professional sports industry, there is enormous potential to revolutionize sustainability practices within professional sports if people were properly educated and engaged on the topic.

SINCE GRADUATING FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO IN 2024…
Nicola Jackman is completing a Masters of Architecture at University of Calgary with the goal of becoming a licensed architect. Her under graduate specialization was in Architectural Studies and a major in Art History,