EY has published its annual table of engagement with different sports – a summation of participation, followership and attendance. It shows:
- Football (top), F1, Tennis and then Swimming maintain their top 4 placings respectively.
- Other sports moving up the rankings are Hiking (+2), Cricket (+6), Rugby Union (+3), Golf (+4) and Basketball (+7).
- Engagement with sport remains strong (88%). A little down on 2024 (which was boosted by the Olympics). A breakdown of engagement by Age and Sex is shown in the image above.
EY commented “The rapid growth of Basketball among Gen-Z, driven by digital content and live experiences, underlines the importance of innovation in fan connection. These shifts show that sports organisations must embrace diversity in participation and engagement, invest in wellbeing-focused activities, and adapt to changing fan behaviours.”