By Obiabin Onukwugha
African civil society organisations, have described TotalEnergies’ sponsorship of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals, as a deliberate attempt to “greenwash pollution” linked to the company’s oil and gas operations across Africa.
In 2024, environmentalists criticised the decision of TotalEnergies to sponsor the AFCON, stating that instead of spending its billions to pay just compensation to victims of its destructive activities in the continent, clean up its mess and invest in clean and sustainable forms of energy, the company has been engaging in greenwashing by sponsoring the Africa Cup of Nations.
The groups led by Greenpeace Africa, last weekend stated that the French multinational’s sponsorship sits uneasily alongside its environmental and human rights record, particularly its involvement in Mozambique’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) project and the controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), the world’s longest heated crude oil pipeline.
They argued that these projects clash with the values of African pride and culture associated with the tournament, which runs from December 21, 2025 to January 15, 2026 in Morocco.
Greenpeace Africa, working with the Magamba Network, an African activist digital media organisation and partners in the Kick Polluters Out (KPO) Network, released a satirical video challenging TotalEnergies’ sponsorship of AFCON.
The campaign portrays the sponsorship as an attempt to obscure what it describes as the company’s “destructive environmental and human rights record” across the continent.
A second satirical video, produced over Christmas by Journal Rappe, a Senegalese hip-hop media group, together with the KPO Network, extended the campaign into Francophone Africa, with the aim to reinforce calls to end what they describe as the “greenwashing” of African football.
The campaigners argued that “TotalEnergies’ continued sponsorship comes at a time of growing scrutiny over fossil fuel expansion, land acquisition and legal challenges linked to alleged misleading climate claims and environmental harm.
They say these projects have, in some cases, resulted in mass displacement, making the company’s association with the three-week tournament an act of “deceptive greenwashing.”
They also contend that the branding strategy is designed to distract the public from mounting evidence of harm linked to the company’s operations.
“TotalEnergies isn’t sponsoring AFCON to support African football; they’re using the beauty of the game to hide the ugliness of their pollution,” the KPO Network said in a statement. “They only care about their image and profits. Greenwashing is their favourite tactic, and this pretend shift into renewables is just another PR stunt. AFCON is simply another chance for them to distract Africa from the destruction they cause across our continent.”
They argued that football, which is one of Africa’s most powerful cultural forces should not be used to legitimise companies whose core business accelerates climate change and deepens inequality.
They further urged the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to adopt fossil-free sponsorship policies, similar to those that removed tobacco sponsorship from sport in previous decades.
The video launch forms part of a wider continental mobilisation calling on sports institutions, governments and sponsors to prioritise people and the planet over polluters’ profits.
“As Africa faces worsening floods, droughts and heatwaves due to the climate crisis, allowing polluters to wrap themselves in symbols of unity and joy is unacceptable.
. “AFCON should inspire hope, resilience and solidarity, not serve as a billboard for climate destruction,” said Sherelee Odayar, oil and gas campaigner at Greenpeace Africa
Downtoearth reports that as the tournament begins, campaigners are also calling on financial institutions to withdraw support from TotalEnergies’ Mozambique LNG project, following the recent exits of UK Export Finance (UKEF) and the Dutch export credit agency Atradius DSB, both of which cited human rights concerns.
