According to the first comprehensive study on the global economic impact of the sports sector, conducted by the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI) in collaboration with the consulting firm Oliver Wyman, the global sports goods industry generates approximately 675 billion dollars of GDP annually and supports 28 million jobs worldwide.
The report is titled “The Industry that Moves the World” and estimates that, considering the impact of the supply chain and worker spending, the sector’s overall contribution reaches about 0.6% of the global economy, while the 28 million jobs supported by the industry equate to about one in every 125 employed globally.
Positive and negative aspects emerged
According to the study, the entire sports economy is now worth about 2.3 trillion dollars and could reach 3.7 trillion dollars by 2030. The sports goods industry alone also generates approximately 120 billion dollars in direct tax revenue each year, and when considering the supply chain and worker spending, the figure rises to about 230 billion dollars. Innovation also plays an important role: over the past 10 years, patent applications related to sports have grown by an average of 7.6% per year, a rate over 70% higher than the overall patent growth rate. In 2024, companies in the sector also invested around five billion dollars in sponsorships, not including products and other non-monetary contributions. 
Woman trail runner jumping over small river on beautiful mountains Among the critical issues, however, are trade barriers. In fact, sports goods are subject to an average duty of 14.1%, almost three times higher than the average applied to other traded goods internationally. The complex global supply chains can also result in materials, components, and finished products being subject to multiple customs costs, with possible repercussions on final prices for consumers. 
For the WFSGI, it is therefore important to create simpler and more predictable trade rules, along with fiscal and regulatory policies that promote product accessibility and greater collaboration between the public and private sectors.
The full report can be found at this link
