Rich football fans spark backlash with actions after big game: 'Wealthy people wealthying'

Over 100,000 fans filled the rafters to watch Ohio State eke out a narrow win over Texas in the first game of the college football season. In the game's aftermath, residents on a local subreddit observed a curious phenomenon.

Multiple threads on r/Columbus noticed the flurry of unusual activity at the university's airport as the more affluent fans made their way home.

Scores of private jets were observed taking off from the OSU airport to the chagrin of the locals.

"All the private jets scattering like cockroaches," was the rather uncharitable description from one of the threads, which showed a flight-tracking map.

Another speculated about the passengers, "I live by the OSU airport and it's always busier on game day but today is really busy. Lots of rich Texas oil executives in their private jets I guess."

The discussions raise an interesting point about the consequences of large-scale events and the excessive consumption habits of the ultra-wealthy.

Luxury forms of travel, such as private jets and megayachts, have an outsized impact on the environment.

According to PBS, in just one year, the planes of the super-rich were responsible for 17.2 million tons of planet-heating emissions in 2024. For reference, that's equivalent to the pollution footprint of over one million ordinary Americans (16 tons per person, per the UCAR Center for Science Education) or the entire nation of Croatia, per Worldometer.

Little wonder the thread's comments were full of scorn for the decadence of spending thousands of dollars and causing tons of pollution for the sake of an afternoon's entertainment.

"Wealthy people wealthying," one said.

Do you think your city has good air quality? Definitely 🥰 Somewhat 😮‍💨 Depends on the time of year 😷 Not at all 🤢 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

"Is Matthew McConaughey one of them?" another wondered, and they're almost certainly right.

"Scurrying back to their One-star state," one quipped.

Another user was less amused, saying, "RIP air quality."

For another commenter, it was a sign of a growing problem: "I was at the game today and swear I have never seen so many planes fly over during a game. Been going the last 10 years or so."

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