UEFA teams up with PepsiCo for Champions League (UCL) and Women’s Champions League (UWCL) finals

Europe’s football-governing body UEFA has teamed up with PepsiCo to make the UEFA Champions League finals a “zero waste to landfill” by 2026 with help from the following PepsiCo brands: Pepsi, Lay’s, Doritos and Gatorade.

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At the men’s UEFA Champions League (UCL) final at ?stanbul’s Atatürk Olympic Stadium on June 10, as well as the UEFA Women’s Champions League (UWCL) final at PSV Stadion in Eindhoven on June 3, PepsiCo, along with UEFA, will introduce new circular economy practices focused around 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) to reduce the impact of football on the environment and drive resource efficiencies. This will be done through:

• Reduce: The usage of fully recyclable, zero plastic and biodegradable fibre cups at the UCL final will significantly reduce single-use plastic. Gatorade will also host a 5v5 global tournament for 16-year-old boys and girls, in which PepsiCo will take steps to implement carbon neutrality through recycling methods, carbon offsets and sustainable clothing.
• Reuse: PepsiCo will be making sure that the UWCL final this year will be the first one to introduce “returnable packaging for food and drinks”. This means fans will be able to buy drinks from 52,000 0.40L transparent cups along with a returnable deposit of €2. The Doritos nachos served at the stadium will also be on returnable trays.
  For the UCL final, PepsiCo will be teaming up with leading scalable reuse system TURN to reduce single-use plastic by having 48,000 TURN smart cups and bin operations at the Champion’s Festival sampling stands.
• Recycle: At both the finals, all PepsiCo food and beverage packaging will be 100% recyclable. The 2023 UCL final in ?stanbul will also have 220 recycling bins.

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Archana Jagannathan, Chief Sustainability Officer Europe at PepsiCo, commented:

“As one of the world’s most respected food and beverage companies, PepsiCo is continuously aiming to use its reach and influence to change the way society makes, uses and disposes of packaging. We are honoured to play a key role in both the men’s and women’s UEFA Champions League Finals. It is a privilege to use football as a vehicle to drive positive change on and off the pitch, whilst still providing fans with an unforgettable experience.” 

Michele Uva, UEFA Social and Environmental Sustainability Director, added:

“UEFA is delighted to continue the collaboration with PepsiCo to deploy circular economy practices across these two important Finals. Our actions are focused on finding and disseminating solutions applicable to football matches taking place across national associations, leagues and clubs in Europe to play our part in tackling environmental challenges.“