To what extent do fashion and media coverage influence consumer sports participation?

How best can clubs and suppliers encourage consumer sporting activity?

What are the key factors that will entice or encourage all-round sports participants into new activities?

Consumers are spending more on sports and sports equipment that ever before. With over six in ten adults playing sport regularly in the UK, the sports industry seems to be riding the crest of a wave, with swimming the most popular activity. Keeping fit is the main reason for participation according to the majority of serious participants, but are consumers happy with the facilities, or the money they are having to spend on them? Football is a bigger commercial concern than ever, but has this popularity translated into consumer participation? Are sports that receive less media attention - such as racket sports - losing out to the more newsworthy activities?

This report places sports participation into a wider context and considers factors that indirectly determine the demand for sport, analysing consumer opinion on a range of activities and venues. Are participants more likely to be male, and is it the affluent who place more emphasis on fitness in their lives? Are members of sports teams more inclined to use free recreational areas or facilities than individuals, or are women more likely to use a health club? This report examines sports participation from the consumer's point of view, looking at levels of regular and occasional participation in individual sports. How influential are PDI levels on consumer sporting interest? Sports Participation assesses the outlook for UK sporting facilities, club membership levels and UK consumer fitness.