The market for the organisation of sporting events - France (2024)

1.2 A booming global market structured around numerous international players

The global sports events market was estimated at $***.** billion in **** , and is expected to grow at a CAGR of **.*% to ****.

Global sports events market growth projections World, **** - ****, in $ billions Source: ****

The sporting events sector is seeing the emergence of new events that are just as attractive, changing trends and putting organizers under pressure (***). The sector is also seeing the arrival of new, independent competitors who are using technology to stand out in today's highly competitive market.

Ticket sales for professional sporting events, whether online or in person, are a major branch of this sector. The growth of this industry is propelled by improving economic conditions and rising disposable incomes. Although the global economy came to a standstill following the **** crisis in Europe and China, it has since enjoyed a robust recovery, especially in emerging economies, increasing the purchasing power of the middle classes and expanding their proportion of the overall population[***].

The sports events market is experiencing dynamic growth, mainly propelled by the intensification of event sponsorship. Companies seek to maximize product visibility and target a wide audience, exploiting events as strategic advertising platforms. Sporting events, for example, all benefit from sponsors, who accounted for **.*% of their revenues in ****. At ...

1.3 A very dynamic French sports events market

The French sports event organization sector boasts a remarkable economic dynamic. According to BPCE L'Observatoire, the French sports economy accounts for *.*% of GDP, representing sales of ** billion euros generated by companies in the sector.

The sports economy in France has seen several fluctuations between **** and ****, with moments of growth followed by periods of slowdown due to crises such as the COVID-** pandemic. Here is a summary of the data available for this period:

- In ****, household spending on sport fell significantly by **.*% due to pandemic-related restrictions, dropping to **.* billion euros. That year, the share of this expenditure in GDP was *.*%, with public administrations also contributing *.* points of GDP to sport[***]. In ****, the market for the organization of sporting events would be worth around **.* million euros, without taking into account all expenses such as broadcasting rights, sponsorship...

- In ****, an upturn was observed, with household spending on sport rising by **.*% to **.* billion euros, maintaining its *.*% share of GDP. Government spending on sport also increased by *.*%, totaling **.* billion euros, or *.* points of GDP[***]. The size of the sports event organization market in that year would then be **.* million euros.

change in the size of the French sports event organization market France, **** - ****, in ...

1.4 Examples of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and Euro 2016 soccer tournament

Focus on the Paris **** Olympic Games:

The Paris **** Olympic and Paralympic Games are a major project financed mainly by private funds. Indeed, **% of the organization's budget is covered by private revenues, including the contribution from the International Olympic Committee (***), corporate partnerships, ticketing revenues and licenses. the Games Organizing Committee's budget amounts to *.*** billion euros, with an IOC endowment of *.* billion euros, ticketing revenues estimated at *.* billion euros, and partnerships contributing *.*** billion euros. only *% of funding comes from public sources, specifically earmarked for the organization of the Paralympic Games[***].

Details of financing for the Paris **** Olympic Games France, ****, € billion Source: ****

The event is also seen as a significant economic driver for France. The Games are expected to create major economic opportunities, with an estimated ***,*** jobs mobilized over * years and the publication of thousands of public contracts totaling over €* billion. These contracts cover various sectors such as construction, organization and tourism, and aim to ensure equal opportunities for all economic players wishing to participate in the success of the event.

As for the expected economic spin-offs, they are significant. The Games are likely to stimulate the economy through tourism, international visibility and investment in infrastructure. Although specific figures on attendance and economic spin-offs ...

1.5 The Covid-19 pandemic hits sporting events hard

European market

The sports events market paid a heavy price at Covid-**. Events on a global scale, such as the Olympic Games, and on a continental scale, such as the Euro Football Championship, were postponed.

The organization of a major sporting event involves the massive movement of people in sports arenas, but also in public transport, bars and restaurants. To reduce the speed at which the pandemic spread, these sporting events were quickly cancelled or closed to the public.

While some events have been postponed until ****, such as the Tokyo Olympic Games and the Euro Football Championship, allowing the sector to catch up economically, others have been cancelled or held behind closed doors, such as the European soccer championships. The loss of revenue from ticket sales is likely to have a long-term impact on the sector's finances. [***]

The Council of Europe has commissioned a report entitled "The impact of the COVID-** pandemic on security, safety and service policies and practices at sporting events" to understand the impact of the pandemic on the organization of sporting events.

Impact of the COVID-** pandemic on sporting activity during confinement Europe, ****, in Source: ****

The graph above illustrates the severity of the measures taken to prevent ...

2.1 Different notoriety levels depending on the type of sporting event

According to an awareness survey conducted by Sponsoring, almost * out of ** French people are aware that France will be hosting the **** Summer Olympics in Paris. However, only **% are aware of the organization of the **** Paralympic Games.

Did you know that France will organize... France, between **** and ****, in % Source: SponsoringSponsoring Panel question: "Between **** and ****, France will be hosting various international sporting events. Did you know that France will be hosting..." * the European Athletics Championships in Paris from August ** to **, **** * the European Women's Handball Championships in December **** * the Alpine Skiing World Championships in Courchevel-Méribel in February **** * the European Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Paris in April and May **** the European Men's Volleyball Championships from September ** to **, ****

Not all sporting events enjoy the same notoriety and popularity among the French. The Olympic Games, however, enjoy particular attention from the French. In fact, in ****, the France Télévisions channels dedicated to the Beijing Olympic Winter Games (***) attracted the attention of almost ** million French people, or **% of the population, who watched at least one minute of their broadcasts. This figure is slightly lower than that for the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in ****, which were watched by ** million people. Disciplines newly introduced for the Paris ...

2.2 Monitoring of sports championships below the European average

Every weekend, soccer attracts an average of over **,*** spectators per stadium in France (***), which is lower than in the major European leagues.

Spectator match Average number of spectators in European soccer leagues from ****-**** to ****-**** source : EPFL

However, the least popular leagues (***) showed an upward trend after COVID-**, while the English and German leagues saw a slight drop in their top attendance figures.

We also note a record year in **** in terms of attendance for French sporting events.

Source: ****

These figures illustrate a significant revival of interest in sporting events in France after a period of reduced attendance due to the pandemic.

Although it is also important to take into account the significant role played by pay-TV channels in broadcasting these events, the follow-up to sporting events in France is still very high.according to Sponsoring 's awareness survey (***) and the European Athletics Championships, for example. Other events, such as the European Artistic Gymnastics or Volleyball Championships, which are aimed more at an insider audience, are logically less watched in France.

Television viewing of sporting events in France France, ****, in % Source : Sponsoring Panel question: "Do you intend to watch any of the following international sporting events live or in the ...

2.3 A positive reception from the French for the organization of international competitions

The French are less and less enchanted by the idea of hosting major international sporting events. Those whose daily lives will be impacted by these events are the least satisfied, as the example of the Paris **** Olympic Games shows. Indeed, people living in the Paris region are much less enamored with the idea of hosting the Olympics than the rest of the French population.

Paris will host the next Olympic and Paralympic Games in ****. For you, is this... ? France, ****, in Source: ****

Thus, **% of French people consider the hosting of the next Olympic Games to be a bad thing, a figure that is steadily rising.

Percentage of French people who consider hosting the Olympic Games to be a good thing France, **** - ****, in Source: ****

In fact, only **% of French people consider the organization of these Games to be a good thing. This share has dropped ** points in two years.

Paris will host the next Olympic and Paralympic Games in ****. For you, is this... ? Île-de-France, ****, in Source: ****

Ile-de-France residents are even less seduced by the idea of hosting the Games in the summer of ****, as **% consider it a bad thing, ** percentage points more than for France as a whole. This figure has also ...

2.4 The rise of digital viewing of sporting events

New digital channels such as computers, tablets and smartphones are increasingly competing with the media that traditionally broadcast sporting events. According to the CNDS, the classic model of a single broadcast on a given channel is gradually being replaced by a model of "targeted information flows" that adapt to viewer preferences. In France, * out of ** Internet users are "passionate about sports information on their computer screen", making France the world champion in terms of digital visits to sports sites, according to the same source.

French demand for sporting events is characterized by a growing demand for ease of access and personalization of the content viewed, with more and more young French people multiplying the number of interfaces for viewing sporting events. According to a Google study reported by Les Echos, **% of Millenials use a phone at the same time as watching the Superbowl game. These new requirements call for ever greater adaptability on the part of sports event organizers, particularly in terms of mastering the new technologies that enable the events in question to be broadcast.

The sports market is undergoing a digital revolution, as cinema did before it, with streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video playing a ...

2.5 New sports practices and new players

The French market is the scene of several fundamental trends, including the arrival of new sports, mechanically correlated with the emergence of new players who are disrupting the market.

The rise of streaming encourages the emergence of new disciplines: e-sport

E-sport is also entering the game. The **** edition of the France Esports Barometer shows that the number of Internet users aged ** and over interested in esport has increased by * million compared to ****, reaching **.* million. Of this total, *.* million watch only video game competitions, down *.* million on the previous year. By contrast, the number of people who both play and watch esports rose by *.* million to *.* million. The number of people who only take part in video game competitions remains stable at *.* million. This data indicates a growing trend among esport players to also watch these competitions.

Following the lifting of government restrictions on public attendance in ****, physical competitions have resumed, to the delight of fans, LAN players and spectators of major events. The trend observed since the previous year is confirmed: competitions with a physical presence are gaining ground on online competitions. In ****, just under half (***) took part in both types of competition, a slight increase of * point.

Where do e-sport ...

3.1 A market divided between public, association and private players

A multitude of players are present in the sporting events market. The Centre National pour le Développement du Sport (***) has mapped out the value chains involved in sports events, distinguishing between public players, private players and sports associations:

Public players: on a national scale, these players are the State and specialized agencies (***) act on a local scale. The main aim of these players is to promote the development and accessibility of sporting activities. They co-finance, control and coordinate the organization of sporting events; Sports associations: this category includes international sports federations (***). The role of these players includes qualifying athletes and defining competition rules; Private players: their main aim is to create economic value and generate profit from the organization of these events.they include national event suppliers (***) and local event suppliers.

France boasts substantial, internationally recognized expertise in the organization of sporting events, so the national market is growing and relatively resilient. The strengths of the national sports events market include

Experience and professionalism across the entire value chain, coupled with the mobilization of numerous French players, enabling the organization of a wide variety of events; The support of public authorities, notably in the form of subsidies (***), represents a major ...

3.2 The sports events value chain

Organizing a sporting event, whatever its size, requires a sound knowledge of sports management to enable the various stages of the process to be rationalized and rigorously structured. These are described in the publication Organizing a sports event by M. Desbordes and J. Falgoux, and can be summarized as follows:

The different stages in organizing a sporting event

Source: ****

As emphasized by M. Desbordes, marketing strategy is a key stage in the design of a sporting event. It is based on a precise and rigorous analysis of the quantitative and qualitative aspects of the project: the guiding idea - in other words, the theoretical basic plan - must be supported by a concrete and rational positioning, backed up by an analysis of all the costs and benefits, enabling the profitability of the project to be judged.

at each stage of this organization, a multitude of players come into play, each positioned on a precise aspect of the project: financial, commercial, logistical, administrative, sporting, regulatory, etc. :

Source: ****

3.3 Increase in the number of employees and companies involved in the organization of sporting events

The organization of sporting events is recorded by INSEE under NAF code"**.** Other sports-related activities". However, this category is broader and includes :

the activities of producers or promoters of sporting events, whether or not they have their own facilities; the activities of professional athletes, referees, judges, timekeepers, etc. ; the activities of sports leagues and regulatory bodies; activities related to the promotion of sporting events; the activities of racehorse stables, greyhound kennels and racing car stables; the operation of fishing and hunting reserves; the activities of mountain guides; activities in support of sport or recreational fishing and hunting.

Workforce and establishments in other sports-related activities (***) France, ****-****, in units Source: ****

The number of establishments rose across the board, with average annual growth of *.**%. The year with the strongest growth was ****, with an increase of **.**%. The number of employees also showed an upward trend, with average annual growth of *.**%. The most significant growth was observed in ****, when headcount rose by **.**%. These trends indicate sustained expansion in terms of both physical structure and human capital, with a notable acceleration in the last few years analyzed.

This trend can be explained both by a higher number of sporting events and by larger-scale sporting events. The ...

4.1 Characterization of sporting events in France

According to the French Ministry of Sports, the sports events sector in France can be segmented along two main axes:

firstly, the level of media coverage of the event: a high-profile event will thus be considered "general public", while a less high-profile event will be reserved for an audience of insiders; secondly, the recurrence of the event: the greater the recurrence, the more the event will be considered "emblematic" of the French sporting landscape. conversely, one-off events will be considered rarer, and will be all the more recognized the larger the audience they attract.

on the basis of these two axes, we can therefore distinguish four categories of event in the sports events market, represented in the diagram below from the CNDS report:

Pale orange bubbles refer to events taking place in a stadium, while darker bubbles refer to events taking place outside a stadium. Larger bubbles refer to events attracting more than ***,*** spectators, medium-sized bubbles to events attracting between ***,*** and ***,*** spectators, and smaller bubbles to events attracting fewer than ***,*** spectators.

4.2 Examples of sporting events organized in France

Here is a table listing some of the biggest sporting events that are held regularly in France or have taken place exceptionally, including their frequency:

Some of these events stand out, either positively or negatively. For example, the ****-**** Champions League Final, originally scheduled to take place in Ukraine, was held at the Stade de France, and left a lasting impression thanks to its chaotic turn of events. Many spectators were blocked at the entrance to the stadium, tear gas was used and attempts to break in by climbing over barriers were reported. These incidents resulted in a thirty-six minute delay to kick-off[***].

This disastrous experience was relayed by numerous international media outlets, calling into question France's ability to host major international sporting events, primarily targeting the Olympic Games planned for Paris in ****. Thus, the Rugby World Cup **** served as a test case for the Olympics, providing valuable lessons on the robustness of the security system, the efficient management of flows and transport after the initial adjustments of the first weekend of competition, as well as the capacity to reactively coordinate a heterogeneous set of players, such as local authorities, operators, volunteers, private security agents and civil protection associations, in the ...

4.3 Prices vary widely according to competition type and discipline

Variable prices within the same competition:

For the ****-**** season, it was cheaper to see a Ligue * soccer "top match" in a stadium in France than in Italy, Germany or England. According to the Sofoot website, the average price to attend a Ligue * "top match" is €**.

Even within the French leagues, prices vary widely. For the least attractive matches, the cheapest price in Ligue * this season is less than €**, compared with €** in Serie A or €** in the Premier League. on the other hand, for the most popular matches, and to see teams featuring popular players such as Paris Saint-Germain (***) or Olympique de Marseille, fans may have to fork out as much as €***.

Euro **** example:

According to UEFA, ticket prices to attend Euro **** matches in France were logically increasing as the competition progressed. However, price segments appeared according to the seat category present in the stadium, with ratios of * to ** for the final and * to * minimum for the other phases of the competition between the cheapest and most expensive tickets.

Ticket prices for UEFA European Football Championship matches, by category and tournament progress France, ****, in euros Source: ****

Example of the Paris **** Olympic Games:

Prices for the Paris Olympics obviously depend on the ...

5. Regulations governing the organization of sporting events

The organization of a sporting event is subject both to the regulations applied to all types of public events and to specific specific rules and regulations (***), which are described in detail on the Ministry of Sports website:

The sporting event in question must be declared to the local administrative authorities (***), as well as to the delegated sports federations involved; The organizer must take out civil liability insurance to cover participants, employees, volunteers and other parties involved in organizing the event (***); Numerous obligations apply to safety at sporting events: medical certificates for participants, compliance of sports equipment with current standards, presence of a security service, drawing up a rescue plan in the event of an emergency, and so on. These rules are all the more stringent today, given the high risk of terrorist attack at this type of event. The organization must also comply with environmental regulations. This is particularly the case for sporting events taking place on or near sites classified as "Natura ****" biodiversity protection areas, which require prior study and assessment of the impact on the site.

6. Segmentation of market players

• Amaury Sport Organisation
• TV Sport Events
• OC Sport (Groupe Télégramme)
• LV Organisation
• Lagardère Sports and Entertainment
• Eurosport Event (TF1)
• Le Figaro - Gala
• CIO
• FIFA
• UEFA
• Adidas
• Sodexo France
• Artea Events
• AEG Anschutz
• Alive Groupe
• Nike
• Red Bull
• Télégramme Groupe