16.6% of people were current members of sports clubs and 24.0% were former members. Those who never joined sports clubs were 59.4%.
The Sasakawa Sports Foundation has been conducting the National Sports-Life Survey in Japan.
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16.6% of people were current members of sports clubs and 24.0% were former members. Those who never joined sports clubs were 59.4%.
The Sasakawa Sports Foundation has been conducting the National Sports-Life Survey in Japan.
16.6% of people were current members of sports clubs and 24.0% were former members. Those who never joined sports clubs were 59.4%.
In terms of gender comparison, the percentages of “Currently member” were not different between 16.9% of males and 16.2% of females, whereas males reported a percentage of “Never joined” (57.5%) that was 3.9 points lower than females (61.4%).
The percentage of “Currently member” was the highest at 29.3% in the 18-19 age group. It decreased to 9.9% of the 30-39 age group through 15.3% of the 20-29 age group.
Then, it increased with age: 13.4% of the 40-49 age group, 15.4% of the 50-59 age group, 19.1% of the 60-69 age group, and 23.8% of the 70 and over age group.
“Community groups and clubs” showed the highest membership rate at 30.8%, followed by “Friends and acquaintances' clubs” at 28.9%, and “Private clubs” at 24.3%.
The sports club membership types differed by gender. For males, “Friends and acquaintances' clubs” was the highest membership rate at 33.2%, followed by “Community groups and clubs” at 28.9%. On the other hand, “Private clubs” was the highest at 34.0% for females, followed by “Community groups and clubs” at 32.8%.
“Community groups and clubs” showed a higher membership rate at 39.8% in the 60-69 age group and at 39.2% in the 70 and over age group compared to other age groups.
On the other hand, “Workplace clubs” was higher in the 20-29 age group (21.1%) and in the 30-39 age group (23.3%) than in other groups. Furthermore, “Private clubs” was joined by the 50-59 (32.1%) and 60-69 (32.3%) age groups more than by others.
In order to understand the levels of participation in sports and physical activities by Japanese, the Sasakawa Sports Foundation (SSF) has examined the statistical data gathered through the “SSF National Sports-Life Survey”, which has been conducted every other year since 1992. This survey measures the number of people aged 18 and over taking part in sports and physical activities across Japan in terms of frequencies, duration, and intensity. People take part in sports and physical activities in different ways, with many doing a range of activities including sports spectating and sports volunteering.
1） Population: People aged 18 and over who live in Japan
2） Sample size: 3,000
3） Number of locations: 300 (90 in metro areas; 122 in cities with a population of over 100,000 people; 64 in cities with a population of less than 100,000 people; 24 in towns and villages)
4） Extracting method: Quota method
June 10th - July 10th, 2022
Leaving method:
The survey officials visit respondents, distributing a paper-based questionnaire and having the respondents fill out the questionnaire within a certain period. Then, the survey officials return to the respondents to collect the questionnaire.
| 3,000 | Male : 1,503, Female : 1,497 | |
|---|---|---|
| 18・19 years old | 75 | Male : 41, Female : 34 |
| 20-29 | 374 | Male : 193, Female : 181 |
| 30-39 | 437 | Male : 223, Female : 214 |
| 40-49 | 582 | Male : 299, Female : 283 |
| 50-59 | 529 | Male : 267, Female : 262 |
| 60-69 | 489 | Male : 241, Female : 248 |
| 70 and over | 514 | Male : 239, Female : 275 |
This survey measures a wide range of sporting activities including fitness activities, Strolling/Walking/Cycling for leisure or travel and dance.The school PE classes were excluded whilst sports club activities at schools and workplaces were included.
Estimated sports participants are calculated by applying the rate of regular sports and physical activities participation over the past year to the total population of those 18 and over (105,448,713 people in Japan).
In this survey, the participation in sports and physical activities are divided into the following levels; “Level 0” for those who did not participate in any sports or physical activities for the past year; “Level 1” for those who participated at least once during the year, but less than twice a week; “Level 2” for those who participated at least twice a week; “Level 3” for those who participated at least twice a week with a duration of “more than 30 minutes”; and “Level 4” for those who participated at least twice a week, duration of “more than 30 minutes”, and with more than moderate intensity.
Upon request, we will provide raw data (including cross-tabulation results, text in Japanese only) from every National Sports-Life Survey taken to date. Interested parties should contact the SSF through the link below.