Greenpeace releases animated video in campaign against fossil fuel sponsorship of Rugby World Cup

Environmental group Greenpeace released an animated video Wednesday showing a massive amount of oil flooding the field for the upcoming opening game of the Rugby World Cup in a campaign against fossil fuel sponsorship of big sporting events.

The video takes aim at energy giant TotalEnergies, a sponsor of the event in France.

The film shows the Stade de France seconds before the start of the first match of the tournament between France and New Zealand on Sept. 8. Oil spills out of TotalEnergies advertising boards hanging in the stadium.

“The global fossil fuel industry extracts enough oil to fill a rugby stadium every 3 hours and 37 minutes,” Greenpeace said.

The environmental group said Rugby World Cup Limited tried to block the release of the video on Tuesday on the eve of its release.

“But we won’t be silenced,” said Edina Ifticene, a campaigner at Greenpeace France. “Fossil fuel companies like TotalEnergies sponsor events like the Rugby World Cup to distract everyone from their climate destruction.”

TotalEnergies and Rugby World Cup organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

When it became a sponsor of the tournament, TotalEnergies said it would work with organizers “to create an environmentally responsible event, notably through the deployment of a decarbonized mobility plan and the supply of green energy.”

Earlier this week, local organizers and TotalEnergies announced the launch of a car-sharing service for fans.

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AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby