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August 2023 - Sport, Leisure and Tourism

Two-fifths of UK adults have cancelled at least one sports TV subscription due to cost of living crisis: The cost of living crisis is continuing to impact the lives of people in the UK, even down to the TV subscriptions they pay for. A recent survey has found that 41% of people have cancelled at least one TV subscription to a sports channel due to rising costs and trying to cut back on non-essential products and services.

The survey by investment platform Saxo, polled 1,000 people finding that younger people have been hit the hardest by the crisis, with six in 10 reporting cancelling at least one sports channel subscription, the highest of any age group surveyed. Half of the respondents aged between 25 and 34 also said they had cancelled a sports subscription due to the current economy. 

Live sporting events

When it comes to attending live events, people have also been impacted, found the research, with almost half of the fans who said they regularly attend live sporting events saying the current situation has put them off attending. This has affected female fans more than men, with more than half the female respondents polled saying they have been to fewer live sporting events (54%) compared to just over two-fifths of men (42%).

Harry Leyburn, senior marketing and engagement manager at Saxo, said: 

“The obsessive enthusiasm of live sports fans has made it undoubtedly one of the undisputed financial successes of the 21st century and typically ‘recession-proof’. However, even the fervent passion of fans is starting to wane as these figures show, with fewer fans across the UK attending live sporting events because of the fall in ‘real’ incomes.

“Typically, when attendances drop, we would then expect to see people instead choosing to watch games. Yet fans are being forced to cut back on even watching sport on television as a result of the crisis gripping the UK.”

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