Sport — a spur to innovation and excellence

SUMMARY OF:

Conclusions on sport as a driver of innovation and economic growth

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE CONCLUSIONS?

In these conclusions, the Council of the European Union set outs recommendations for the European Union (EU) and for EU countries to create conditions in which the benefits of sport for innovation and the economy can be maximised.

KEY POINTS

Economic benefits

Sport represents 1.76 % of the EU’s economy and accounts for 2.12 % of employment.
Sport is recognised as being important in addressing the issues of youth unemployment and social inclusion, and is a priority theme of the Europe 2020 strategy.
Sport has been a resilient sector in times of economic crisis.

Driver of innovation

Competition and the need for constant improvement and excellence has led to innovation in such areas as injury preventionSport technology, materials scienceSport technology and biomechanics.Sport technology has become a leader in certain fields of applied science such as textile technology and human-oriented design.
Innovations have had positive spillover effects in other sectors such as food and drink, IT/software and the automotive industry.
Sports sponsorship and media rights funding lead to investment, and sports events can be platforms for product development and launches.

The conclusions invite EU countries to:

promote cooperation between administrations, universities, research centres, industry and sports bodies, supported by EU funding;
encourage sport initiatives to boost growth and facilitate the take-up of innovations by other sectors of the economy;
raise awareness of the potential of sport for growth and employment, sharing best practices at all levels.

The conclusions invite the EU to:

support and coordinate collaboration across EU countries and the exchange of good practice, networks and projects, and continue to collect statistics on the link between sport and the economy;
organise ahigh-level event on the contribution of sport to innovation and economic growth, and encourage initiatives and sharing in the context of the European Week of Sport (communications tools to promote the week have been developed and are free for use);
include sport issues in their contacts and relations with relevant non-EU countries.

BACKGROUND

The EU Work Plan for Sport 2014-2017 recognises the key importance of developing sport’s economic dimension.
For more information on EU sport policy, see:
- ‘Policy overview’ on the European Commission's website.

MAIN DOCUMENT

Conclusions of the Council and of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, on sport as a driver of innovation and economic growth (OJ C 436, 5.12.2014, pp. 2-5).