The privilege to pollute? Air pollution, environmental justice, and the privilege of charter flights in women’s professional sports

Women’s professional athletes are demanding better work conditions. This has long included calls for charter flights to reduce travel disruptions, allow for more rest, and better player security. However, women’s professional sports finds itself expanding within the context of a global climate catastrophe. Increasing the number of charter flights might be what women athletes deserve but it is neither what the planet needs nor can handle. This article offers data comparisons between the estimated carbon emissions for the Los Angeles Sparks, Toronto Six, and Chicago Red Stars against the Los Angeles Lakers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Chicago Fire, exploring the carbon emission increase if/when women’s teams shift to charter travel. Using the lens of environmental justice, the emissions data exposes how, as women’s professional team sports gain economic privilege, their success comes at the environmental expense of the low-income and racialized women/communities that they seek to support.