Fitness/04/09/2018

EU survey: Almost one in two Europeans never do sports

We need your consent to enable the rating function!

This feature is only available when corresponding consent is given. Please read the details and accept the service to enable rating function.

Rate
Bookmark

These are worrying figures presented by Commissioner Tibor Navracsics at the annual EU Sport Forum. 46 percent of Europeans say in the Eurobarometer survey that they "never play sports". In order to change this, the EU is now hoping for help from employers.

More than one in eight EU citizens does not even walk for ten minutes, according to the survey.
More than one in eight EU citizens does not even walk for ten minutes, according to the survey.

According to the report, 46 percent of EU citizens now state that they "never play sports". This figure has risen by four percentage points since 2014 and describes a trend that has been intensifying since 2009. In Germany, it applies to 38 percent of those surveyed. Sports activities improved in only six countries: Belgium, Luxembourg, Finland, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Malta.

These results were presented by Hungary's EU Commissioner Tibor Navracsics to the Eurobarometer survey during the annual sports forum in Sofia. The EU-wide survey also shows that most physical activity takes place in parks and outdoors (40 percent) or at home (32 percent). More than one in eight Europeans walk less than ten minutes a day or sit for more than eight and a half hours a day.

Employers and municipalities should get citizens moving now

These figures underline the role that employers can play, the Federation of the European Sporting Goods Industry writes. Employers could, for example, help citizens to move around in the workplace. The EU also believes that cities and municipalities could help to make citizens more physically active in their daily lives.

The main reasons for EU citizens to exercise or be physically active are improved health (54 percent) and fitness (47 percent). Lack of time (40 percent) is the main obstacle for EU citizens.