Bolton Wanderers and United Utilities join forces to ‘defend every drop’

‘Defend every drop’ that’s the message Bolton Wanders has been sharing with football fans.

With the football club already scoring sustainability goals through its own water saving efforts, they joined forces with United Utilities to remind fans that despite the recent rain, every drop counts when it comes to water resources.

Summer of 2025 was the hottest since records began and the driest since 1976 which means reservoir levels remain low. With the Pennines one of the worst affected areas, United Utilities is promoting water saving messages to football fans at the upcoming derby between Bolton Wanderers and Wigan Athletic FC.

Reminders such as ‘spend one minute less in the shower’, ‘save rain water in a butt’ and ‘Bolton, help us defend every drop, please save water’ were displayed on the pitchside boards during the match.

The water company for the North West also had their own team at the game sharing water saving tips, giving away leaky loo strips and offering fans the opportunity to book a free water efficiency audit for their home.

Michelle Atkinson, Water Demand Director at United Utilities said: “It has been a scorcher of a summer, and while we welcome the recent rainfall, there is a still a lot of catching up to do before water resources recover and reservoirs are fully replenished.

“Reservoir levels are still extremely low, and we need this wet weather to continue throughout the autumn and winter.

“Our customers have been great at saving water throughout the summer and being there at the match gave us a great opportunity to remind more than 25,500 football fans from Bolton and Wigan that every drop counts and it is important to save water, whatever the weather.”

Off the pitch, water efficiency is an important goal at Bolton Wanderers FC where a water recycling system is used in the wash-off area at the training ground; urinals are fitted with sensors to eliminate unnecessary flushing and advanced weather monitoring systems are used to minimise pitch watering.

Following recent water efficiency audits provided by United Utilities the club is now saving more than 1.4million litres of water every year – enough to fill more than 9,500 bathtubs.

Matt Hargreaves, Head of Facilities at Bolton Wanderers, said: "Bolton Wanderers is committed to environmentally sustainable operations.  

"We are actively seeking to reduce our consumption of all utilities via behavioural change and the use of current and emerging technologies.  We have a number of initiatives in operation which help us monitor, manage and reduce our water consumption, and are currently working with partners to explore methods which will help us reduce consumption further.  

"A reduction in consumption has positive benefits in respect of our impact on the environment, our carbon emissions, as well as our spending."

Michelle Atkinson at United Utilities added: “The club has made great strides in reducing its own water usage and we’re delighted to work with them to help spread the #everydropcounts water saving message to home and away fans.”