The super glue of social
“Sport cuts across society like nothing else.”
Bee in the know ~ july/august 2012
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I may be somewhat tainted in my viewpoint, but from where I sit, nothing brings people together and nothing contributes better to our social wellbeing than sport. It is the universal glue that binds us and defines us as a community. Through sport we come together, participate together, celebrate together, learn together, develop new skills together, win together, suffer defeat together, are healthy and active together and have fun together. The sports sector has never been great in telling its story of what a massive contributor it is to our community, but we are getting better thanks to a growing understanding of the need to collect robust data and information, plot trends and tell ‘good news’ stories that all contribute to the value of sport. Sport New Zealand has led this information surge from the national level, and supported by Sport Hawke’s Bay we are starting to get a true picture of how sport contributes, and what! Last year Sport NZ released national data delivered through a major study by Lincoln University into the value of sport. The study showed that the sector’s contribution to national GDP was substantially greater than first envisaged, with an estimated value of $5.2 billion. This study showed that sport and active recreation results in gains in productivity and health benefits valued at an additional $1 billion. And when the personal benefits of participating in sport was added (including the value of volunteerism)
the overall estimate of the sector to New Zealand was $12.2 billion. Sport and recreation in Hawke’s Bay are valued by young people, with 92% of 5-17 year olds taking part in at least one sport or recreation activity over a year. In Hawke’s Bay 93% of adults take part in at least one sport or recreation activity a year. Our region boasts 32,903 sport volunteers, according to the study, all contributing in their own way to our social wellbeing. The contribution to regional GDP (including volunteered services) is estimated (based on 2008/2009 data) to be $179.6 million or 2.8%. Personally, I think this is a little low, as the study did not really take account of the direct economic benefit of sports events, which bring visitors to Hawke’s Bay. Sport Hawke’s Bay estimates this benefit to be around $40 million per year. Sport as entertainment Recently Sport NZ produced a new study which looked at the importance of sport from an entertainment perspective. Sport, whether at the community/participation level or as a spectator activity, must compete with other entertainment and therefore the discretionary dollar. So it is important that we understand how it stacks up. The ongoing study, carried out by Australian research company Gemba, looks at 230 online surveys for 52 weeks across three age-group bands with a focus on capturing the passion levels of participants on a 1-5 scale. Those of particular interest are the ‘Fanatics’, whose passion levels score 4 and 5 on the scale. These devotees and eternal optimists are
the people who will form 90% of sport ‘members’, consume 80% of merchandise, be 70% of event attendees and account for over 75% of sponsor awareness figures. So they are an important group to stay connected to! For Hawke’s Bay, the survey showed that movies/DVDs, according to the Fanatics, occupied our attention as the #1 entertainment, with rugby at #3 and League at #5, although it should be noted that this first set of data was collected during the Rugby World Cup era (live music concerts scored #2 and theme parks #4). Within the entertainment sphere, sports such as squash and bowls were perceived as ‘Losing Relevance’ along with opera and ballet. Sports such as snow sports, Twenty20, and football – along with live comedy and electronic games – were perceived as being ‘On their Way Up.’ The report also showed that equestrian and yachting occupied the top two spots as perceived ‘Exclusive’ forms of entertainment. Nationally, looking only at sports, the top five ‘passions’ in order for 16-24 year olds were rugby, football, League, snow sports and marine fishing. For 25-44 year olds, football dropped to #4, with V8 Supercars in at #5. For the older 45-64 age group, V8s and football dropped off the passion list, to be replaced by the more traditional cricket and netball. In Hawke’s Bay, according to the Fanatics, rugby, League, V8s, cricket and marine fishing occupied the top five sporting passions. The data from the Gemba research is plentiful, and provides sports administrators and marketers with plenty of work ahead, if they are to change perceptions and grow their sports.