The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directives (CSRD) and its impact on stadium operations
Discover more about the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Learn what CSRD entails, when your club or stadium needs to comply and key insights from our recent survey on sustainability.
 | As of January 5, 2023, new EU legislation has introduced significant changes in how companies report their social and environmental impacts. This is part of the European Green Deal, aiming to enhance transparency and sustainability across industries. The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) requires all companies to disclose their risks and opportunities related to social and environmental issues and the effects of their activities on people and the planet. |
Implementation Timeline
The CSRD will be rolled out in phases. Companies need to meet two of the three criteria to be compliant.
First Phase:
Applicable to: Large companies with more than 500 employees
Criteria:
Employees: > 500
Reporting for: Financial year 2024, with reports due in 2025.
Second Phase:
Applicable to: Large companies with less than 500 employees
Criteria:
Balance Sheet: >€25m
Net turnover: >€50m
Employees: > 250
Reporting for: Financial year 2025, with reports due in 2026.
Third Phase:
Applicable to: SME’s, SNCI’s and captive (re)insurance undertakings
Criteria:
Balance Sheet: 450 000 - €25m
Net turnover: 900 000 - €50m
Employees: 10-250
Reporting for: Financial year 2026, with reports due in 2027. Optional opt-out is available for 2026 and 2027, with full compliance required by 2028.
Fourth Phase:
Applicable to: CSRD Subsidiaries of third-country non-listed undertakings
Criteria:
EU Net Turnover: >€150m
Reporting for: Financial year 2028, with reports due in 2029.
Prepare, as most top-tier European clubs/stadiums will need to be ready by phase 2 meaning these they need to report for the financial year 2025, with reports due in 2026.
CSRD Reporting Standards
Under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), companies are required to report on a broad range of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) aspects.
Reporting Standards: Companies must report according to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). These standards cover various ESG topics and are designed to ensure consistency and comparability of the reported information.
Content: The reports must include information on:
Environmental matters (e.g., greenhouse gas emissions, energy use)
Social and employee-related aspects (e.g., working conditions, diversity)
Human rights
Anti-corruption and bribery
Assurance: The CSRD requires that the reported sustainability information be audited. Initially, this will involve limited assurance, but it will move towards reasonable assurance over time.
Digital Reporting: Companies will need to provide their sustainability information in a digital format to facilitate access and analysis.
These requirements aim to enhance transparency and provide stakeholders with the information they need to assess the sustainability performance of companies.
ESSMA Survey Insights:
Our recent ESSMA survey on sustainability with 35 participating stadiums, sheds light on how stadium operators view sustainability and how they are preparing for the CSRD.
With 91% of stadium operators having taken sustainable initiatives in the last 5 years and 71 % of them having invested in energy-efficient systems to reduce consumption, it’s clear that stadium operators are taking efforts to make their venues more sustainable.
At the same time however, these same stadium operators would only give their venues an overall sustainability score of 5.8 out of 10 on average, with 0 stadium operators giving their venue a 9 or 10.
Moreover, 51% of them indicate that they currently do not actively monitor their venue’s energy usage. It will therefore come as no surprise that 94% of them plan to keep investing in sustainability over the next 5 years.
This same type of contradiction can be found in how clubs are preparing for the European Corporate Sustainability Directives. While 83% of clubs have appointed a sustainability manager, 31% of clubs are not at all familiar with the CSRD.
25% anticipate a significant impact from the CSRD
59% feel it is too early to determine the impact
16% believe it will have minimal or no impact
This discrepancy suggests that while there is a recognition of the importance of sustainability, there is still a considerable amount of work needed to ensure that clubs are fully prepared to comply with the new regulations. The varied expectations regarding the impact of the CSRD—ranging from significant to minimal—further underscore the uncertainty and inconsistency in how clubs are approaching these upcoming changes. This lack of uniform preparedness could pose challenges as the implementation date approaches, potentially leading to rushed compliance efforts and missed opportunities for more strategic, long-term sustainability planning.
Insights from this article, along with in-depth discussions on the CSRD and its implications for rugby and football clubs, will be featured at the upcoming 11th ESSMA Summit taking place on 12 and 13 November in the iconic Estádio Civitas Metropolitano, home of Atlético de Madrid. Join us to explore how the industry is navigating these new regulations and to gain valuable strategies for compliance and sustainable growth.
Sources
https://www.pwc.nl/en/topics/sustainability/esg/corporate-sustainability-reporting-directive.html