In 2026, the Winter Olympic, Paralympic Games, FIFA World Cup, and Youth Olympic Games will converge, but their impact goes beyond stadiums.
Fundamentals at Risk
The World Economic Forum projects the sports economy will reach $8.8 trillion by 2050, but this progress depends on healthy people, stable environments, and resilient communities. Rising physical inactivity, climate, and nature risks are straining these foundations.
Global debt burdens and escalating healthcare costs, projected at over $300 billion by the end of the decade according to the World Health Organization, are already testing governments' fiscal and political capabilities.
Threats and Opportunities
Climate constraints are narrowing the geography of global sport, underscoring the need for urgent action. The World Economic Forum estimates that left unaddressed, environmental and health disruptions could wipe out as much as $1.6 trillion annually from global sports earnings by mid-century.
Circularity is a business imperative in sport, with opportunities for reducing waste, plastic pollution, and environmental impact while expanding participation. The Mastercard Economics Institute projects sales of used sporting equipment will grow at double-digit rates in the United States next year.
Strategic Levers
Mega events, facility construction, and equipment manufacturing impose significant resource demands, but they don't have to. Circular business models can reduce environmental impact while expanding participation.
Public spaces designed for movement can turn sports venues into year-round community assets, increasing participation, reducing emissions, and making communities more attractive for events and tourism.
Investors must steer financial flows toward initiatives that deliver social and environmental value alongside profits, from sustainable venues to nature-positive tourism, and community activation.
Collaboration and Next Steps
As growth continues at pace, global decision-makers have an opportunity to shape the sector's next chapter. Sport is not only shaped by global risks; it is one of the few cultural and economic forces with the reach to help mitigate them.
Markets alone won't deliver this shift, and governments, fiscally and politically constrained, cannot act alone. As we enter the second half of a decisive decade, sport stands out as a cultural force capable of mobilizing attention, capital, and political will at scale.
The Bottom Line
- Sport's growth trajectory is increasingly exposed to environmental and health disruptions, threatening up to $1.6 trillion annually from global sports earnings by mid-century.
- Deliberate collaboration among governments, businesses, and civil society is essential to address these challenges and ensure the sector's long-term success.
- Investors, policymakers, and the sports industry must prioritize resource stewardship, public space design, and purpose-driven capital to unlock the full potential of the sports economy.
