British green energy industrialist Dale Vince, 60, gained a significant achievement last week when his Forest Green Rovers, recognized by the United Nations as the first carbon-neutral soccer club in the world, clinched promotion to England's third division for the first time in its 133-year history.
The club, established in October 1889, was bought by Vince in 2010, who completely transformed the club into the self-titled "world’s greenest football club."
Vince is the owner and founder of the British energy company Ecotricity, which specializes in wind and solar energy products. After purchasing Forest Green Rovers, Vince quickly moved to establish it as the first eco-friendly club in soccer.
After banning the consumption of red meat in the club's training complex, the aptly-named Eco Park, the ban was then expanded to not allow the sale of all meat products on the ground. Since 2015, Forest Green Rovers are officially "all-vegan," the first soccer club to operate this way.
Vince, appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2004 for his "services to the environment and to the electricity industry," continued to make eco-friendly strides when, in 2021, Forest Green became the first club to play in a football kit made from composite material consisting of recycled plastic and coffee grounds.
However, Vince has also used Forest Green to also promote his political agenda, not just his ecological one.
In an April Sky Bet League Two match played in Forest Green's award-winning eco-friendly field, the club hoisted the Palestinian flag "in solidarity with the Palestinian people," according to Vince.
We flew this flag at FGR’s game today. In solidarity with Palestine.The conflict there has all the same ingredients as the one in Ukraine - invasion, occupation, murder of civilians, destruction of homes and hospitals - and sieges. pic.twitter.com/D6a2nqCuMz
— Dale Vince (@DaleVince) April 18, 2022
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has "all the same ingredients as the one in Ukraine," Vince wrote on Twitter to explain the decision. "Palestine has been under siege by Israel - by air land and sea, for decades."
"The US allows this, pumps billions into Israel to support its economy and military and uses its veto to block any meaningful action by the UN," Vince continued.
"What’s happening there is a disgrace to nations that collectively self-identify as the West," the green entrepreneur claimed. "It stands in stark contradiction to ‘our’ claims to moral superiority, civilization and democratic values."