What you need to know

Consumer spending on spectator sports attendance will grow by around 3% in 2019 to reach £1.5 billion, driven by an injection of revenue provided by England and Wales’ staging of the Cricket World Cup.

Major events will continue to be a key driver of future value and volume trends over the short to medium term, with women’s sport in particular expected to enjoy a further boost in profile during the Olympic year of 2020 and through England’s hosting of football’s Women’s European Championships the following summer.

Women’s sport enjoyed a breakthrough year in terms of public awareness, interest and attitudes in 2019; the next step is to move beyond its current major event focus to build a regular following for domestic leagues, teams and athletes.

Covered in this Report

This Report focuses on UK adults’ experience of watching live spectator sport, either at an event venue, on television or via the internet. Listening to live radio commentary and watching television highlights or live coverage on a time-shift basis are not included in the core definition of the Report.

Except where indicated, market value estimations comprise consumer expenditure on sports event tickets only. Spending on sports television and internet service subscriptions is excluded, as is secondary expenditure at spectator sports venues (on food, beverages, merchandise etc).

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