Sports investment by country.

[Caruut]

Does anyone know a reliable source for the amounts different countries are investing into sports, specifically into Olympic athletes and potential Olympic athletes?

Are the UK, for example, spending vastly more on sport than France or Germany?

 

[taiwan]

Here's a breakdown ofUK funding for Olympic sports, not sure over what period though.

 

[BroDeal]

Does anyone know a reliable source for the amounts different countries are investing into sports, specifically into Olympic athletes and potential Olympic athletes?

Are the UK, for example, spending vastly more on sport than France or Germany?

A recent newspaper article I skimmed said that Australia spent $750M for its Olympic athletes. I think that is probably for the four years since Beijing. It seems like a lot for an Olympic team size of 227 athletes. Australia ended up with the same number of golds as Team Borat.

I wonder if better results could be had by simply promising a $20M payment for a gold.

EDIT: I just googled for news and found one article that stated Australia spent $300M for teh run up to London and another article that stated $52M was spent in 2010.

 

[dopedornotdoped]

Does anyone know a reliable source for the amounts different countries are investing into sports, specifically into Olympic athletes and potential Olympic athletes?

Are the UK, for example, spending vastly more on sport than France or Germany?

The result of this is a British cycling programme funded at £26.39m ($40m / €33m) for the Olympic cycle of 2009-2013 or £6.5 million per year. By contrast the French federation’s annual budget is €15 million ($18.5 m) per year, which covers everything from head office to grassroots programmes as well as the elite programme. USA Cycling’s total budget is $11.8 million, again for everything.

http://inrng.com/2012/08/british-cycling-funding/

Clearly more for the cycling. Also Sky has been a sponsor to GB cycling team team (2 millions pounds). I guess the rowing must be largely above other nations as well.

Since Beijing and an important increase of the fundings for GB team, Brits have doubled and then Triple their usual number of medals.

 

[BroDeal]

It would be funny to see what would happen if the U.S. spent the same % of GDP that Britain spends.

 

[TubularBills]

It would be funny to see what would happen if the U.S. spent the same % of GDP that Britain spends.

That would be one hell of a mountain of dope.

Sir Everest

 

[the big ring]

This interactive page has it by GDP / population - just click any column for a reorder.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/sport/olympics/medal-tally-gdp-population/

 

[Maxiton]

It would be funny to see what would happen if the U.S. spent the same % of GDP that Britain spends.

Hahaha

That would be one hell of a mountain of dope.

Sir Everest

Hahahaha

It would be a huge secret gene doping lab deep inside a mountain someplace. Call it the Brooklyn Project.

Until the gene doping thing was actually working, they could get some of their pal investors in the military-industrial complex to create some designer drugs. (Though come to think of it we may have already seen this part.)

 

[sniper]

britains 33 million investment in cycling is more than 10x as much as german investment in cycling.

On year's basis, germany invests roughly 130 million on topsport including anti-doping, which the article below claims roughly equals britain's yearly investment. The article claims however that Britain has invested its money more wisely (in a more focused manner).

http://www.abendblatt.de/sport/arti...Athleten-44-Medaillen-626-Euro-monatlich.html

Note at any rate that there is serious debate in Germany at present. The olympics were somewhat disappointing and lots of prominent voices are currently demanding a higher financial investment.

 

[Turner29]

The US Federal government does not subsidize its Olympic Athletes.

 

[Catwhoorg]

But there is the huge monetary investment in student athlete scholarships by universities, funded from various sources.

Different structure, but a huge amount of $ when aggregated.

 

[rickshaw]

what do the numbers mean?

Here's a breakdown ofUK funding for Olympic sports, not sure over what period though.

Please I don't understand.
Are these $$ (sorry no pound sign on my keyboard) government budget numbers?
If so for what period of time? Four years?
How is the money spent? allocated to each sport organization?
How much goes for administration, how much to athletics?
Does this cover cost of trials, qualification events etc, team travel expenses?
Does it include facilities development, like pools, and fields etc?
What about additional sponsor money?
Money raised by athlete sponsors (like in the US)?
What about... my mind is reeling...

 

[jordan5000]

Canada's own the podium program has spent $106 million over the past 3 years.

 

[Roude Leiw]

I would be very careful with these numbers. Top athletes might get taxpayers funding out of a lot of different sources (local, national, through state-subsidized NOC), afaik more than one country uses the same principle as in Germany where a lot of less "bankable stars" are able to completely live for their sport as "students", part of the military or the police. I would be very surprised that reliable data is available not only to cover this range but to make it comparable from country to country and I do not even want to include sponsoring by state owned companies (very popular here in Lux) for top athletes in those "less bankable" sports.

 

[DirtyWorks]

The US Federal government does not subsidize its Olympic Athletes.

It does it in ways that are not obvious. For example, they grant Olympic sports monopoly status. The blessed federations have permanent advantages.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly#Characteristics

While what you are saying is true, the sports federations recognized by the USOC are not subject to any competitive pressure. They may as well be Federally funded.

 

[Catwhoorg]

Please I don't understand.
Are these $$ (sorry no pound sign on my keyboard) government budget numbers?
If so for what period of time? Four years?
How is the money spent? allocated to each sport organization?
How much goes for administration, how much to athletics?
Does this cover cost of trials, qualification events etc, team travel expenses?
Does it include facilities development, like pools, and fields etc?
What about additional sponsor money?
Money raised by athlete sponsors (like in the US)?
What about... my mind is reeling...

They are the funding amounts from UKSport, the autonomous body, that is partly funded by the national lottery, and partly through general taxation. (with a minor portion from other means)

Clicking on a sport (oh say cycling) shows the funding is for 2009-2013 time frame, and details include the 2012 medal target (or other placing targets in some minor sports).

UK sport will have a speeding review some point fairly soon looking at the targets and shifting allocations from sports that did poorly (swimming) to ones that did well (Boxing, cycling, and rowing leap out).

A condition of ongoing UK sport funding is a realistic medal prospect in 2016 or 2020. Some minor sports got money in the run up to 2012, purely so the team GB could enter a team in their host spot (handball springs to mind).

Some money goes directly to athletes (stipends) some goes to the funding body for coaching, development, travel costs etc etc.

It does not include new infrastructure costs (though maybe some of the running costs of say the Manchester velodrome get allocated, the capital costs are not)

Sponsorships of athletes or organizations (such as Sky/British Cycling) are again outside of that, but the usual guidelines seem to be that an athlete who is getting significant sponsorships/earnings will not get a stipend.

Hope that helps.