The Sports Business Advisor

During a recent tour of Boston’s storied Fenway Park, noted for the world famous “Green Monster,” I happened upon another green monster. Except this monster had nothing to do with Fenway’s unique shade of “Fence Green.” Rather, it involved a “green” perception problem for athletes.

As I began this wonderful tour, our guide pointed over his shoulder and announced in his best Boston accent, “Over there, is the place where all the players park for each game. It looks like a Hummer dealership each afternoon.”

Umm. A Hummer dealership?

Having seen my share of stadium VIP parking garages, I knew exactly what he meant: Gas guzzling SUVs, sports cars, and luxury sedans lined up next to each other for the automotive beauty pageant. They’re badges of success. In fact, MTV’s Cribs features these rides as an “essential” for pro athletes.

While governments, companies, and even school children, are clamoring for new ways to support “sustainable” practices improving our world’s environment, our nation’s professional athletes are missing the band-wagon. In fact, they’re not only missing the band wagon, they’re trying to equip it with a 300-hp V-8 engine, an eight passenger compartment, and three tons of sheet metal.

Now, I don’t intend to call out the Hummer brand, as it’s a fine truck. Nor do I mean to suggest that people should be deprived of buying the sweet ride of their choice. However, the Hummer, with its 13 miles to the gallon in the city, has become the badge for the “I-don’t-care-about-fuel-economy-because-I-can-afford-it” set. And, athletes, whether they like it or not, are role models for young and old alike. Thus, they’re rides may inadvertently suggest an indifference towards the environment.

However, whether athletes care about the green movement or not, they should take note that many sports fans do. In fact, according to the 2007 GfK Roper Green Gauge study, 87 percent of American consumers admitted they were seriously concerned about the environment. Among the top of the environmental concerns are fuel and energy shortages, and man-made outdoor pollution at 54 and 53 percent respectively.

And fans don’t leave their opinions about the environment and world priorities at the ticket gates of stadiums. That’s why you see events, like the NFL’s Super Bowl, promoting themselves as “carbon neutral.”

And some household-name athletes are on the move in this area. Shawn Marion is a major supporter of Global Green, while Steve Nash and Tony Hawk stand behind Stop Global Warming. What are you doing?

I recommend three ways to get started:

First, recognize the harm you’re doing to your reputation to simply ignore this issue. If you act in a way to demonstrate you don’t care about the issues important to your fans, your fans will respond by not caring about you.

Second, if you care about this issue, integrate it into your cause marketing platform. (You do support a charity, don’t you?) It’s easier than you think to get started. It can be as simple and organizing a tree-planting initiative, implementing recycling of the plastic sport bottles consumed during practices and games, or just changing the car you drive.

Third, do it because it’s the right thing. That’s always a good rule of thumb for a professional in the public spotlight.

With environmental concerns likely to remain high priorities for the rest of this century, it only makes sense to banish the green monsters from your public perception.

Posted by Ken Ungar.