Explainer
The Sport Economy
Sport is far more than the competitions people watch. It is travel, goods, participation, production, technology, capital and work. Here is how the economy of sport fits together, with a source for every number.
2.3 trillionUS dollars a year in revenue
That is the broad sport economy as estimated by the World Economic Forum with Oliver Wyman in January 2026. It is revenue, not GDP, and a model estimate, not an audited total.
The same research projects about 3.7 trillion by 2030 and 8.8 trillion by 2050, and puts up to 517 billion of revenue at risk by 2030 from climate and physical inactivity.
Approximate shares, rounded. The sector split is from a published summary of the same research (Consultancy Middle East, 3 February 2026). The parts do not add exactly to the rounded total.
Sector 1
Sports tourism
672 billion US dollars a year
Travel and visitor spending to play or watch sport: event trips, marathons, ski and golf holidays, training camps.
Sector 2
Sporting goods
614 billion US dollars a year
Equipment, apparel, footwear, bicycles, wearables, aquatic and winter gear.
Sector 3
Participation and fitness
560 billion US dollars a year
Gyms, clubs, coaching, facilities and amateur events: the money spent to take part.
Sector 4
Professional sport
140 billion US dollars a year
Leagues, clubs, championships, tours and events: media rights, sponsorship, tickets and licensing.
Sector 5
Related activities
about 300 billion US dollars a year
Sports media platforms, video games, nutrition and other adjacent markets.
Five measures that are often confused
- Revenue
- what an organisation or a defined industry earns in a period.
- Consumer spending
- what people spend within a defined scope: equipment, trips, memberships.
- Value added
- the contribution to GDP, after intermediate costs.
- Valuation
- what ownership is worth. Not annual activity.
- Economic impact
- direct, indirect and induced effects. Never added to sales.
Commercial properties, one example
Formula 1 reported about 3.9 billion US dollars of revenue for 2025, and MotoGP 573 million on a pro forma basis (Liberty Media, 26 February 2026). These are the revenues of the commercial rights holders, not of every team, supplier, circuit and hotel around them.
Sources
- World Economic Forum with Oliver Wyman, Sports for People and Planet, 15 January 2026.
- Consultancy Middle East, "Global sports market to hit 3.7 trillion by 2030, say Oliver Wyman and WEF", 3 February 2026.
- Liberty Media, fourth quarter and year end 2025 results, 26 February 2026.
Bring your part of the economy to the Forum
Capital, production, technology, participation or talent: every sector has a place in the four days.
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