sport participation in the eu: trends and...

Sport participation in the EU:trends and differences

Prof. dr. Maarten van Bottenburg(professor of sport studies at Utrecht University and research director of the Mulier Institute)

W.J.H. Mulier Institute - Centre for Research on Sports in Society(University of Amsterdam, University of Groningen, Tilburg University, Utrecht University)

www.mulierinstituut.nl

• Decline of social capital and civic engagement

• Less and less ties and trust• Spending less time doing

sports• More and more bowling

alone in stead of bowling together

The importance of social capital

• Making people more trusting and trustworthy• Making people more active in society• Making people fight illness more effectively• Making trusting connections to others• Resolving collective problems

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

Number of organizations with morethan 50,000 members

Sport

Intern. solidarity

Political parties

BroadcastingcorporationsHealth careorganizationsNature andenvironmentChurches anddenominationsConsumerorganizationsTrade unions

Women's

Active club membership in no field as extensive in Dutch society as in sport

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

Volunteers as a percentageof total population (2002)

Sports clubs

Churches/denominations

Schools

Health care

Other organizations

Cultural organizations

Youth work

Hobby clubs

Trade unions

Political parties

Volunteering in no field as extensive in Dutch society as in sport

Treaty establishing a constitution for Europe

• Article I – 17– The Union shall have competence to carry out supporting,

coordinating or complementary action in the field of sport.

• Article III – 282– The Union shall contribute to the promotion of European

sporting issues, while taking account of its specific nature, its structures based on voluntary activity and its social and educational function.

Focus attention on the data:

• What is the sport participation level?

• Is sport including all people?

• Which trends can be observed?

1. To what extent are data on sports participation collected in the EU and its member states?

2. What is the scale and nature of sport participation in the EU and its member states?

3. Which trends and differences may be identified in this respect?

Research questions

4. What are the key drivers of sports participation?

5. What are the research gaps with respect to sport participation trends and differences in the EU?

Research questions

• Collection and analysis of existing data on sport participation

– Pan European sport participation surveys (Eurobarometers, COMPASS, HETUS, IPAQ)

– National sport participation surveys and membership figures (with the help of researchers/contact persons in 25 member states)

• Literature study on key drivers

Research methods

Levels of sports participation in the EU

Sports participation level strongly depends on definition of terms.

The margins are often set very low.

60

49

38

17

5

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Exercise or sportevery now and then

Exercise or sport atleast once a month

Exercise or sport atleast once a week

Exercise or sport atleast three times a

week

Vigorous physicalactivity >6 hrs a week

Perc

enta

ge o

f EU

citi

zens

Sport participation in 15 EU member states, 15 years and over (2003). Big differences between member

states, with a clear geographical pattern.

76 72

6053 52

45 43 43 43 3934 37

27 26 22

38

99

10

7 7

10 10 9 68

11 7

6 65

11

15 18

3140 41 45 46 49 52 53 55 57

67 6873

53

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Finlan

dSwed

enDen

mark

Irelan

dNeth

erlan

ds UKFran

ceBelg

iumLu

xembo

urgGerm

any

Austria

Spain

Italy

Greece

Portug

al

EU25

% o

f pop

ulat

ion

at least once a week 1-3 times a month less often/never/dk

66

60

5857

48 4847 47

46

43

40 40

36 36 3635

34 34

31 31

28

24

17

7

4

40

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

% o

f pop

ulat

ion

Por

tuga

l

Hun

gary

Italy

Gre

ece

Latv

ia

Lith

uani

a

Spa

in

Cyp

rus

Pol

and

Mal

ta

Luxe

mbo

urg

Est

onia

Bel

gium

Ger

man

y

Slo

vaki

a

Fran

ce

Aus

tria

Cze

ch R

epub

lic

Net

herla

nds

UK

Irela

nd

Slo

veni

a

Den

mar

k

Sw

eden

Finl

and

EU

25

No participation in exercise or sport in 25 member states in 2004(>15 years). New member states do not close up the ranks.

Scandinavia

western Europe

southern Europe

10 new members states

Portugal15Greece15Greece15Portugal15Portugal15

Greece14Portugal14Portugal14Greece14Belgium14

Italy13Spain13Belgium13Belgium13Italy13

Spain12Italy12Spain12Italy12Spain12

Austria11Belgium11Italy11Spain11France11

Germany10France10Ireland10France10Greece10

Luxembourg9Germany9Germany9Germany9Germany9

Belgium8Luxembourg8France8UK8UK8

France7Austria7Netherlands7Denmark7Luxembourg7

UK6Netherlands6UK6Luxembourg6Denmark6

Netherlands5UK5Luxembourg5Netherlands5Netherlands5

Ireland4Ireland4Austria4Ireland4Austria4

Denmark3Denmark3Denmark3Austria3Ireland3

Sweden2Finland2Finland2Sweden2Finland2

Finland1Sweden1Sweden1Finland1Sweden1

2004Exercise or play sport

2003Exercise orplay sport

1999Free time spent on

sport and PA

1997Recreational PA in

typical week

1997Meets PA

Recommendation

Meets the PA recommendation (>30 minutes per day), 1999

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Finlan

dSwed

enIre

land

UKDen

markNeth

erlan

dsAus

triaGerm

any

Luxe

mbourg

Belgium

France

Spain Italy

Greece

Portug

alEU 15

Yes No

Participation in vigorous physical activities in a typical week

2013

20 1822

16 15 15 1724

14 13 12

2622

29

28

24

18

34

2524 22

28

29

23

1523

20

15

5159 56

63

43

59 60 6256

45

59

7264

5461

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Finlan

dSwed

enDen

mark

Irelan

dNeth

erlan

ds UK

Fran

ceBelg

iumLu

xembo

urgGer

many

Austria

Spain

Italy

Greec

ePort

ugal

% o

f pop

ulat

ion

none1-3 days4-7 days

Differences in sports participationbetween social groups

16-1925-2935-3945-4955-5965 +Finl

and 19

97/8

Sweden

1997

the N

etherl

ands 1

995

UK 1996

Irelan

d 1994

Portuga

l 199

8

Spain 19

95

Italy

2000

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Sport participation at least once a year by age groups in eight COMPASS pilot countries

Sport participation at least once a year by SES in the UK

59 59

51

43 43

38

31 30

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Large employersand high

managerial

Higherprofessionals

Low er managerialand professional

Intermediate Small employersand ow n account

Low er supervisorand technical

Semi routine Routine

Perc

enta

ge

Trends in sports participation

Change of direction in sports participation:stagnation or decline in the Netherlands

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002

Perc

enta

ge o

f pop

ulat

ion

AVO surveyTBO time use research diariesTBO time use surveysNOC*NSF-membership sportclubsRSO survey

15

7

78

16

9

75

17

17

66

18

17

65

23

16

61

22

16

62

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000

Also stagnation in growth of sport participation in Spain

Did not participate in sport inthe last twelve months

Participated in more than onesport in the last twelve months

Participated in one sport in thelast twelve months

Decrease of sport participation in the UK among almost all age groups

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

1987 1990 1993 1996 2002

Perc

enta

ge o

f age

gro

up

16-19

20-24

25-29

30-44

45-59

60-69

70 and over

Total

However, the number of private health clubsin the UK has strongly increased

Key drivers of sport participation

• Determinants:

• Self-efficacy• Perceived pleasure• Perceived barriers

• Motives:

• Have fun• Belong to a group• Learn skills/techniques• Experience success• Getting fit and healthy• Getting a ‘good’ body• Relaxation

Personal factors

Motives for non-sportsparticipation

• Lack of time• Lack of energy• Lack of interest• Lack of money• Lack of facilities• Having no partner

• Lack of support• Having no transport• Lack of skills• Lack of success• Lack of health• Fear of injury

• Cultural stereotypes (age, gender)• Education• Sporting behavior of parents• Physical education• Coaches/trainers• Peers• Key life events

Interpersonal factors

• Traffic volume• Availability of

footpaths and cycle paths

• Availability of sport and leisure facilities

• Access to nearby sports clubs

Environmental factors

• ‘Sport for all’ campaigns were successful because they corresponded with wider economic and socio-cultural developments:

– Increase in affluence and leisure time– Expansion of higher education– Levelling out of income differences– Individualisation and informalisation of interpersonal

relations– Emancipation of women, youth, elderly, etc.

Societal factors

• From ‘sport for all’ campaigns to ‘health enhancing physical activity’ interventions– Less directed at sport and exercise; more at

physical activity.– Focus of attention shifted from young people to

adults and the elderly.– Focuses less on infrastructure and more on

individual mentalities.

Intervention strategies

• European regions• Gender• Age groups• Levels of educational attainment• Social class• Residential area

Towards a differentiated policy

Thank you for your attention!

This paper was produced for a meeting organized by Health & Consumer Protection DG and represents the views of its author on the subject. These views have not been adopted or in any way approved by the Commission and should not be relied upon as a statement of the Commission's or Health & Consumer Protection DG's views. The European Commission does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this paper, nor does it accept responsibility for any use made thereof.

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