Manchester City to install near 11,000 solar panels

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Image via Manchester City website

Manchester City has confirmed plans to make its training facility, the City Football Academy, one of the largest producers of renewable energy in world football.

The club are seeking planning permission from Manchester City Council to install 10,887 solar panels which will generate up to 4.39 MWh of renewable energy every year – enough energy to power more than 2,000 homes.

The goal is to completely offset the City Football Academy’s annual usage, become extremely sustainable and also share the power with the Etihad Stadium.

More than 3,000 panels will be located on the roof of the 7,000-capacity Joie Stadium, which is home to Manchester City Women, while a further 3,942 will be located on the roofs of other facilities on site such as the First Team and Academy Building.

An additional 3,830 panels will be installed on frames over footpaths and pitch-side areas of the City Football Academy.

Manchester City have had a commitment to using clean energy and reducing carbon emissions for a while and as stated in their 2016-2025 strategic plan, look to become world football’s most sustainable club.

Pete Bradshaw, the Club’s director of Sustainability commented on this huge announcement for the club.

“It is with great excitement that we can reveal our plans to completely offset the power required to run the day-to-day operations of the City Football Academy, by becoming one of football’s largest producers of self-supplied, renewable energy,” he said in a club press release.

“Over many years, we have adopted increasingly sustainable practices across the Club, ranging from the removal of all single-use plastic on a matchday to reusing rainwater and recycling more than 70% of our waste.

“As we look ahead on our roadmap to being net carbon zero by 2030, we know that the production and consumption of renewable energy has an incredibly important role to play, which is why we are delighted at the prospect of installing over 10,800 solar panels at our home in Manchester.”

Manchester City built the academy facility over a decade ago and has since turned it into a state-of-the-art home to the men’s, women’s and academy training facilities as well as a purpose-built stadium for the Manchester City Women’s team.

Now the focus for the club has been on reaching a gold standard under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design guidelines (L.E.E.D) which is the world’s most widely used green building rating system.

The current Premier League champions  are making another leap forward in becoming sustainable and are really committed to pushing their ‘energy agenda’ that has existed since 2016.

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Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

The Melbourne-based anf family-owned business will join the Victory family, uniting two institutions which represent the city’s culture and identity.

A partnership with local roots

As the newest partner of Melbourne Victory, Roasting Warehouse joins forces with a vital part of the city’s sporting landscape.

The club’s Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, outlined why the partnership bears so much value to both parties.

“We are excited to collaborate with Roasting Warehouse, a community-oriented destination for high-quality coffee, proud of its foundations in Melbourne,” said Carnegie via official media release.

“Football and coffee sit at the epicentre of Melbourne’s culture. The two go hand-in-hand, consistently at the centre of the conversation that stirs Melburnians, which is no different to the conversation sport and Melbourne Victory stir in the State.”

Indeed, this is a partnership which combines the identity, passions and culture of an entire city, therefore giving it the foundations required for long-term, mutual success.

Representing the best of Melbourne

Both Victory and Roasting Warehouse are hugely successful in their respective industries. They are institutions with community-oriented philosphies, who pride themselves on craft and quality.

“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Melbourne Victory, a club that represents the heart, passion, and ambition of Melbourne,” revealed Roasting Warehouse Head of Brand, Alexander Paraskevopoulos.

“As a Melbourne-founded, family-run business, supporting a team that means so much to the local community feels very natural for us.”

Furthermore, through their high-quality blends, Roasting Warehouse will look to prepare Victory’s players and staff for high performances on the pitch as the seasons nears completion.

But this is about far more than just fueling athletes.

This is a partnership which embodies and unites two of Melbourne’s greatest strengths and cultural markers – a connection forged from the city’s very own DNA.

 

For more information about Roasting Warehouse, click here.

Marie-Louise Eta makes history as new Union Berlin head coach

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Image credit: FC Union Berlin

In an historic appointment, Eta will take over as head coach of Union Berlin until the end of the season.

History in the making

Previously the first female assistant coach in Bundesliga history with Union Berlin, Eta will now take the reigns of the men’s first team on an interim basis.

Currently, the club sit in 11th place in the Bundesliga table, but with only two wins so far in 2026, relegation appears an all-too-real prospect, and one which the club is desperate to avoid.

“Given the points gap in the lower half of the table, our place in the Bundesliga is not yet secure,” said Eta via official media release.

‘I am delighted that the club has entrusted me with this challenging task. One of Union’s strengths has always been, and remains, the ability to pull together in such situations.”

Eta will begin as Union’s new head coach with immediate effect, and will be in the dugout for the club’s matchup against Wolfsburg this weekend.

 

A step into an equal future

Eta’s appointment signals a major step towards a more level playing field in the football landscape.

Furthermore, Eta joins other coaches including Sabrinna Wittmann, Hannah Dingley and Corinne Diacre who, in recent years, have blazed a trail for female coaches to step into the men’s game.

Wittmann currently manages FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third division, and was the first female head coach in Germany’s top three divisions.

In 2023, Dingley became caretaker manager of Forest Green Rovers, and thus the first woman to lead a men’s professional team in England.

Diacre, now head coach of France’s women’s national team, managed Ligue 2’s Clerment Foot between 2014 and 2017.

 

Final thoughts

The impact therefore, is that Eta’s appointment will show future generations of aspiring female coaches that men’s football is an equally viable and possible pathway as the women’s game.

The time is now to level the playing field.

And while it may be a short-term role, its effect on attitudes towards equality and fair opportunities in the game will hopefully resonate long after the season ends.

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