What the FCA’s Anti-Greenwashing Rule Means for Events, Sponsors & Media

Sustainability claims are no longer just marketing language. They are regulatory territory.

In 2024, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) introduced its Anti-Greenwashing Rule, requiring FCA-regulated firms to ensure that any sustainability-related claims are fair, clear and not misleading. Claims must be capable of being substantiated. Communications must reflect operational reality.

On paper, this applies to financial services firms.

In practice, its impact reaches far beyond them.

For music, media and live events (industries powered by sponsorship, partnerships and global visibility) the implications are significant.

Because when sponsors are regulated, their sustainability claims extend into your world.

A Financial Rule With Cultural Consequences

The FCA’s Anti-Greenwashing Rule forms part of the UK’s broader Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR). Its purpose is straightforward: to prevent firms from overstating or misrepresenting environmental or social credentials.

But consider who many headline sponsors are in live events and media:

Banks.
Asset managers.
Insurance providers.
Investment platforms.

If those organisations promote their involvement in a “carbon-neutral” festival, a “net zero” awards ceremony or a “sustainable” tour as part of their ESG positioning, they must be able to defend those claims.

Which means the claims themselves must be defensible.

This is where event organisers, rights holders and broadcasters enter the regulatory picture: even if they are not FCA-regulated entities themselves.

The End of Decorative Sustainability

For years, sustainability in live events has often been communicated through visible initiatives. Reusable cups. Recycling schemes. Sustainable catering. Tree-planting partnerships.

These initiatives can be positive. But when positioned as proof of comprehensive climate action, they risk oversimplifying complex environmental impacts.

Under tightening scrutiny, decorative sustainability is no longer enough.

The centre of gravity has shifted from visible gestures to measurable impact.

Sponsors operating under the FCA’s rule must demonstrate that the sustainability claims they associate with are grounded in credible data. That means carbon footprints calculated rigorously. Reduction strategies that go beyond offsetting. Clear methodologies behind any use of terms such as “carbon neutral” or “net zero.”

The industry is moving from performance to proof.

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The Supply Chain Is Now in Scope

One of the most significant implications of the Anti-Greenwashing Rule is the way it exposes supply chains to scrutiny.

When a regulated firm references its sponsorship of a live event as part of its ESG performance, the credibility of that claim depends on the event’s environmental integrity.

In effect, event sustainability becomes part of the sponsor’s compliance landscape.

This introduces a new dynamic into sponsorship relationships. Sustainability data is no longer a “nice-to-have” for annual reports or post-event press releases. It becomes part of due diligence. A commercial consideration. A risk factor.

Organisers who cannot provide robust measurement and reporting frameworks may increasingly find themselves under pressure: not just from campaigners or audiences, but from their own commercial partners.

Reputation Amplified at Scale

Live events and media operate in environments of intense visibility. Sustainability claims are made on stage, in press releases and across social channels. They are amplified globally in seconds.

If a claim is challenged, by journalists, activists or online communities, the reputational impact can escalate rapidly.

When regulatory frameworks like the FCA’s Anti-Greenwashing Rule sit alongside the UK’s Green Claims Code and increasing ASA enforcement, the tolerance for vague environmental marketing narrows further.

For cultural institutions and global events, credibility is currency. Once questioned, it is hard to rebuild.

From Compliance to Competitive Advantage

There is another side to this shift. As scrutiny increases, so too does differentiation.

Events and media organisations that can demonstrate rigorous carbon measurement, transparent methodologies and clear governance structures will be better positioned in sponsorship negotiations. They will offer partners confidence, not exposure.

We have seen how essential rigour and transparency are through our role as Sustainability Partner to The Earthshot Prize Awards and Earthshot Week, capturing the full carbon impact of the Awards ceremony and surrounding events year on year since their inception. Operating across multiple countries and complex multi-stakeholder supply chains, the project required comprehensive data capture, stakeholder engagement, bespoke reporting templates and alignment with internal carbon reporting and albert certification requirements. The outcome has been a holistic picture of impact across all events, enabling informed decision-making and continuous improvement year on year: grounded in detailed analysis rather than assumption.

Governance Is the Quiet Risk

Environmental claims often receive the most attention, but governance is where many organisations are most exposed.

Who signs off sustainability messaging?
Is there board-level oversight?
Are marketing claims reviewed against operational data?

The FCA’s rule reinforces a broader principle: sustainability communications must be rooted in governance. Without internal structures ensuring accuracy and accountability, even well-intentioned claims can become liabilities.

In creative industries, sustainability has sometimes sat within communications teams. Increasingly, it must sit within operational and executive leadership.

What This Means in Practice

For events, tours and broadcasts, the question is no longer whether sustainability is important. It is whether sustainability is defensible.

That requires clarity around carbon measurement: including scope 3 emissions, which often represent the largest share of impact in live production. It requires credible reduction strategies that prioritise power, logistics and procurement, not just surface-level initiatives. And it requires alignment between what is said publicly and what is happening operationally.

The organisations that thrive under this new regulatory climate will be those who treat sustainability as infrastructure, not narrative.

A Broader Shift in Expectations

The FCA’s Anti-Greenwashing Rule is part of a wider movement. Across the UK and Europe, regulators are tightening oversight of environmental claims. Investors are scrutinising ESG data. Sponsors are under pressure to justify partnerships. Audiences are more informed than ever.

For music, media and live events, industries that influence culture at scale, this represents a turning point.

Sustainability is no longer just a matter of brand positioning. It is commercial resilience.

The Opportunity for Leadership

Regulatory tightening often feels restrictive. In reality, it can catalyse higher standards.

The events and media sector has extraordinary reach. When sustainability strategies are robust and transparent, they do more than mitigate risk: they shape norms, influence behaviour and build trust.

The FCA’s Anti-Greenwashing Rule is not a warning to step back from sustainability claims. It is an invitation to strengthen them.

Because the future belongs to organisations that can demonstrate (not just declare) their impact.

Strengthening the Foundations

For organisations navigating sponsorship scrutiny, ESG expectations or increased regulatory attention, the solution is not to reduce ambition. It is to increase rigor.

At Hope Solutions, we work exclusively within music, media and live events to ensure sustainability strategies are measurable, operationally grounded and defensible under scrutiny. From full carbon impact assessment to governance frameworks and transparent reporting, our focus is simple: credibility.

If regulatory shifts are prompting new questions around your sustainability positioning, now is the time to ensure the foundations are strong.

Contact Hope Solutions to build a sustainability strategy that stands up to scrutiny and leads with confidence.

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