The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) has stopped its decline in membership. But the worries have not gone away.
The decline in members due to the corona pandemic has stopped for the time being, but the energy crisis continues to cause concern: After the loss of almost 800,000 club members in 2020, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) recorded an increase of 0.17 percent (46,672 people ). This is the result of the current survey. A total of 27 million members are organized in the DOSB.
“The current figures are encouraging. In particular, the fact that our youngest children, children up to the age of six, are consistently increasing is enormously valuable.”says Michaela Röhrbein, responsible for sports development on the DOSB board: “However, if we want this trend to continue or, at best, to increase and transcend all age groups and genders, then we must continue to strengthen sports clubs now.”
Gymnasiums and sports facilities must remain untouched
Röhrbein points to the challenges of the energy crisis in sports and politics “do everything for it” would have to “to absorb the additional burden on site at the base and to get the sport through the winter well”. After two years of the pandemic, the dramatically increased energy costs are already the next big challenge for the associations and clubs. When people stand in front of closed sports facilities and swimming pools, “then the positive trend will reverse very quickly”Röhrbein warns.
Other figures make it clear that sports facilities also have a preventive function that should actually remain untouched: Numerous people are increasingly suffering from a lack of exercise in everyday life and the physical and psychological consequences.
The number of clubs continues to decline
Every sixth child has gained weight during the course of the pandemic, six percent suffer from obesity, and almost a third of children aged 7 to 17 have mental health problems, the DOSB notes in its inventory. Another warning sign: A third of older people and more than 80 percent of children and young people do not reach the WHO recommendations for minimum physical activity.
Another negative trend has also continued in 2021: Since 2014, the registration numbers of the registered clubs have been falling and have reached a low of 86,895. The DOSB announced that it was likely that smaller, volunteer-run clubs would be affected. It can be assumed that smaller, purely voluntary clubs are more affected than large sports clubs that have full-time staff.
Tennis, hockey and golf are the winners
According to the umbrella organization, tennis, hockey and golf are among the winners of the sports organized in the DOSB. Despite the two pandemic years, the associations reported an increase in membership. Dancing, taekwondo and speed skating, on the other hand, recorded significant losses. Among others, the German Football Association (DFB) and the German Basketball Association (DBB) were able to compensate for the losses from the first pandemic year 2021.
With the “ReStart” program funded by the Federal Ministry of the Interior with 25 million euros, the clubs are to be strengthened and society “on the move again” to be brought. “Although the decline in membership in organized sport as a whole has been halted for the time being, many efforts still need to be made to return to pre-pandemic levels and to strengthen sport.”it said in the DOSB message.
