Massive Attack star named Forest Green Rovers' artistic director

Robert Del Naja is a climate focussed musician and passionate football fan

Massive Attack star Robert Del Naja has been appointed artistic director of the world's first carbon neutral football club.

League Two's Forest Green Rovers are one of only 15 organisations around the world to win a United Nations climate action award.

Chairman Dale Vince described the work of Del Naja, aka 3D, as "engaging, innovative and climate focussed".

Last year, Massive Attack toured Europe by train to reduce carbon emissions.

Mr Vince met the Bristol-born musician last year when the band were planning a zero-carbon gig in Liverpool with Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research.

Forest Green Rovers became the world's first vegan football club in 2015 and went carbon neutral in 2017.

Forest Green Rovers has the world's first "organic" football pitch

The government has also backed the decision to grant planning consent to the Nailsworth-based club's bid to build a wooden football stadium, next to junction 13 of the M5.

'Perfect combo'

Mr Vince said: "We like to work at the edge, pushing the boundaries and exploring new ways to do things.

"I'm a fan of Rob's work, it's engaging, innovative and climate focussed - a perfect combo. This is great new direction for FGR and, give it a few more years - for football more generally."

Del Naja will work with Mr Vince to raise awareness of the club's "environmental and ethical agenda".

He said: "Football has a fan engagement issue and I got really interested in Dale's work at the club when I saw how FGR was communicating about climate change to a huge global audience - there's no other team in the game doing this.

"We're already plotting our first moves, and I'll be doing all I can to raise awareness and spread the message that there's another way to do things."