By Anders Lorenzen

The Italian Serie A football team Udinese Calcio have announced a significant sustainability move and teamed up with local utility Bluenergy Group to cover the roof of the club’s stadium with solar panels.

The installation is already in progress and will comprise more than 2,400 panels and is estimated to produce a daily average of 3,000 kilowatt hours (Kwh). 

In addition to the solar panel installation, there are also discussions around adding a battery storage system to enhance the efficiency of the solar installation, expected to be operational in October.

A duty to encourage climate action

The historical Italian football club are hoping this project will do much more than just bringing down energy bills and emissions and they are hopeful it will increase support for green energy in the country. Udinese Calcio General Manager Franco Collavino said about the project “Football has an unparalleled presence in mass media and, in addition to our own responsibility to act in a moral way, we have a duty to spread messages that encourage fans to come together in the fight against climate change.” 

The partnership between the family-owned Bluenergy and Udinese is not new as the utility has been a partner of the Serie A outfit since 2018, supplying the club with energy exclusively from renewable sources for the last few years, and recently they acquired naming rights to the stadium.

Italy has put in place renewable energy targets making two-thirds of its electricity coming from renewable energy sources by 2030, but it is held up by a lengthy process to win permits and in some cases resistance from local administrations and the public who fear damage to both the landscape and agriculture.

While it may seem like an obvious opportunity to fit sports stadiums with solar panels, such installations are a rarity rather than the norm, but perhaps this project will inspire other stadiums to follow suit.