According to the World Economic Forum’s Sports for People and Planet report, the sports economy is projected to grow into an $8.8 trillion global industry by 2050. Yet that growth trajectory is far from assured. Without a fundamental shift in how sport addresses environmental degradation and social inclusion, the very foundations of this growth are at risk.

The report warns that rising physical inactivity, climate change and nature loss could put more than $500 billion of annual sports revenue at risk by 2030. By mid-century, those losses could reach $1.6 trillion a year. The message is clear: sport cannot grow by ignoring the conditions that make participation, performance and fandom possible.

A Growth Model Under Pressure

What distinguishes Sports for People and Planet from previous sustainability studies is its refusal to treat environmental and social issues as peripheral concerns. Instead, it frames them as a core growth and resilience challenge for the sports economy itself.

Sport is uniquely dependent on healthy people, functioning cities and stable natural environments. Clean air, predictable weather, access to green and blue spaces, and liveable urban environments are not “nice to have” – they are the raw materials of sport. When those systems deteriorate, so does participation, performance and commercial value.

As Sebastian Buckup, Managing Director at the World Economic Forum notes in the report’s foreword: “Sport is one of humanity’s most powerful social and economic forces – shaping culture, health and community life across the globe … yet rising health and environmental risks, from sedentary behaviour and extreme heat to air and water pollution, threaten not only the growth of this dynamic economy but also its positive impact on people and communities.”

Yet the paradox is stark. The current sports model often contributes to the very challenges that threaten it – from carbon-intensive travel and resource-heavy events to wasteful consumption patterns and exclusionary participation structures.

Capital With Purpose

One of the report’s most compelling insights concerns the role of capital. In sport, money does not merely follow attention – it actively directs it.

Sponsorships, media rights and investment flows shape which behaviours are normalised, which values are amplified and which systems are scaled. Increasingly, sponsors and investors are recognising that their capital can either reinforce extractive models or help accelerate healthier, more resilient ones.

The report highlights three critical levers:

• Outcome-based funding, where capital is tied to measurable social and environmental outcomes rather than visibility alone
• Behavioural influence, using sport’s cultural reach to encourage healthier and more sustainable lifestyles
• Accessibility, lowering the financial, physical and social barriers to participation

In this context, sustainability is no longer a reputational add-on. It is becoming a strategic lens through which sponsors assess long-term value, risk and relevance.

Participation as a Commercial Imperative

A significant proportion of the revenue at risk identified in the report stems from persistent participation gaps. Young people, women, people with disabilities and marginalised communities remain under-represented across many sporting systems.

If the “fanbase of tomorrow” is physically inactive, disengaged or excluded, the sports economy’s projected growth will remain theoretical. Participation is not simply a social good; it is the demand engine that underpins long-term commercial sustainability.

As Nick Studer Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Wyman and Marsh Management Consulting and co-auther of the report argues: “A thriving sports economy is inseparable from a thriving natural environment; the two are fundamentally intertwined … sport has a once-in-a generation opportunity to redefine prosperity by integrating financial performance with societal health and environmental well-being”

This reframing positions sport alongside transport, housing and healthcare as a system that enables healthier societies – and one that requires deliberate, long-term investment.

Credibility in an Age of Scrutiny

As scrutiny around “sportswashing” intensifies, sport faces growing pressure to demonstrate credibility in its partnerships and commitments. Yet the report identifies a critical advantage: sport remains deeply trusted.

More than 80% of consumers view sport sponsorship as credible, giving sports organisations a rare licence to lead on issues such as climate action, community health and social inclusion. When sport speaks – and acts – with integrity, it carries influence that many other sectors struggle to command.

The challenge now is to ensure that this trust is earned through measurable action, not undermined by superficial commitments or selective storytelling.

A New Playbook for Sport and the Planet

Sports for People and Planet ultimately serves as a call to action for sports leaders, policymakers, investors and athletes alike. Sustainability, it argues, is not a cost centre to be managed, but a prerequisite for long-term profitability and relevance.

The sports organisations that thrive in the decades ahead will be those that understand a simple truth: their economic future is inseparable from the health of people and the planet.

In an $8.8 trillion industry, protecting the field of play – natural, social and cultural – is no longer optional. It is the game itself.