Colour blindness in Sport
Our aim is to support individuals, clubs, businesses and governing bodies alike make their sport more inclusive for people with colour blindness. We have a proven track-record working across a multitude of sports with clients such as UEFA, World Rugby, The FA, Sky Sports and more.
Please watch and share this fantastic animation - it is focused on football but applicable to most sports.
Did you know, at least one player in every male football squad is colour blind
… and, in a full Wembley stadium there will be over 5,500 colour blind spectators?
Colour blindness is an important issue in sport – for clubs, players, spectators, sponsors and broadcasters – from the grass roots through to the highest professional level. It can impact on a person’s performance, spoil the enjoyment of watching sport (live or on TV) and have an adverse effect on revenues if colour blind people turn their back on sport in frustration.
What is a kit clash? Explore this real-world example
Normal colour vision
Colour blind simulation
Some of our Clients in Sport.
We support clubs across the entire value chain to implement guidance from governing bodies. We offer a wide range of services to help clubs upskill staff across various departments including commercial, marketing & comms (e.g. websites/ticketing/merchandise), coaches and technical staff (e.g. player screening/practical workshops), kit selection and design advice etc.
This means we can assist clubs in their quest to maximise player performance whilst keeping sponsors and advertisers happy. For instance we help clubs acquire the knowledge to ensure both their kit colours and sponsor logos are prominent to everyone.
Bespoke services for clubs
Making your venues safe, secure and accessible
In addition to ensuring your operations are colour blind friendly, we support venues to ensure their facilities are accessible to colour blind visitors, fans, staff and external stakeholders. Have you ever considered that to a colour blind person ‘green’ emergency exit signage appears to be the same colour as concrete, or how your food concessions indicate the presence of allergens? Did you know that 8% of your male stewards will be colour blind?
We audit major venues across Europe, benchmarking their existing facilities and recommending cost-effective solutions to improve: venue safety (emergency signage, equipment and procedures), security (turnstiles, accreditation and stewards’ training) and spectator services.
Previous audits include Wembley Stadium, Allianz Arena (Munich), Stadio Olympico (Rome), Twickenham Stadium and many more.
Helping governing bodies ensure their sport is inclusive
We assist governing bodies in the creation of guidance documents and resources to educate their sport in how to support colour blind players, fans, coaches, match officials, employees and external stakeholders.
We have a wealth of experience in helping governing bodies to implement their guidance across their organisation and better consider the implications of colour blindness for their sport. Whether it be hosting international competitions (introducing direct consequences for broadcasters, venues, sponsors and advertisers) or ensuring the needs of the grass roots stakeholders are also met, we have the experience to deliver.
Case Studies: Football
UEFA - Holistic advice on colour blind accessibility for EURO 2020
Auditing stadiums across 12 countries.
Advising in how to ensure kit selection procedures avoid kit clashes.
Training marketing and communications departments on colour blindness accessibility.
The FA - Pioneering the first guidance and resources on colour blindness in football.
A 4-year, £250,000 project working with a range of stakeholders.
Creating guidance documents and other resource materials (see video above)
Creating factsheets for a range of topics, e.g. stadium security and accessibility in conjunction with Leagues (the Premier League and the English Football League.
The Premier League - Advising across a range of topics
Delivering training to all Premier League club secretaries in how to design and select kit colours to avoid colour blind kit clashes.
Supporting the development of guidance documentation and easy-to-follow factsheets for various departments e.g. player welfare.
Delivering training into individual clubs, e.g. Aston Villa FC.
Case Studies: Rugby
World Rugby - Supporting the creation of colour blindness policy across the game.
Creating guidance and resources.
Advising on the World Cup 2023 kit selection for broadcasting purposes.
Presenting to World Rugby’s kit manufacturers.
RFU - Audit of Twickenham Stadium
Comprehensive audit covering the safety, security and service features of stadium itself, plus a review of website & ticketing, merchandising and more.
Recommended potential solutions through written report to increase safety, security and accessibility across stadium operations.
Follow up advice on implementation of recommendations.
Examples of additional projects
Supporting Premiership Rugby around the implementation of their colour blind kit regulations.
Supporting the RFL and Salford Red Devils to replace red pitch markings with an alternative solution.
Interviewing ex-Scottish internationals turned coaches Mike Blair and Chris Paterson as well as ex-International Test referee Dave Pearson as part of research into the challenges faced by colour blind professionals.
Gallery
