Circular design in the sports industry: from sustainability to a circular economy

Abstract

There are numerous organizations supporting sustainability ideas in sports. Moreover, the new approach of Circular Economy (CE) is being introduced into the sector. Thus, it becomes difficult to distinguish the differences between concepts and understand which benefits they bring to the sector. Therefore, this paper explains the difference between sustainability and Circular Economy concepts in sports and highlights examples of Circular Design (CD) practices used in developing the CE model within the sports industry.This research delivers the main task, which is to distinguish the understanding between sustainability and CE concepts. It also analyses the realization of these concepts in the sport industry thanks to the CD practices. Literature review and industry practical examples overview was chosen as a research methodology. The paper presents an overview of the scholarly work, reports, documents on sustainability and CE, and cases from the sports industry. The research defines the differences and relationships between sustainability and CE. It also highlights the role of the CD concept in sports and the relation between CD strategies and business models, which are essential for the successful transition of the sports sector to the circular model.The scheme provided within the paper could be used as a starting point for developing broader guidance and methodology aimed to favour CE in sports through CD.