Athletes on the Canadian bobsleigh team are turning to crowdfunding campaigns to cover their season expenses on the international circuit. Meanwhile, the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys are valued at nearly 9 billion US dollars, while the NBA’s Golden State Warriors exceed 7 billion dollars: never has sports generated so much money, nor have there been such disparities between different disciplines.
This situation reflects a transformation in the sports economy. The global sports economy has never been wealthier, but it remains unevenly distributed between different sports.
The growth of broadcasting rights is a major driver of this expansion. The NFL has secured television contracts worth around 110 billion dollars over eleven years, highlighting the value of sports as audiovisual content. In a fragmented media landscape, live sports events continue to attract large audiences.
In some sports, athletes earn astronomical salaries. For the NBA season 2025-2026, LeBron James is expected to earn a salary of 52.6 million dollars with the Los Angeles Lakers.
This trend is now attracting institutional investors. Private equity funds have acquired stakes in leagues, clubs, or sports facilities. For these investors, sports offer several attractive features: global audiences, predictable revenue streams, and scarce assets, as the number of teams in major leagues is limited.
However, this prosperity does not extend to all sports. In many Olympic disciplines, athletes still rely on public subsidies, sponsorships, or even personal resources to sustain their careers.
In recent years, several sports disciplines have fundamentally transformed their economic models. They no longer operate solely as competitions but as true global media products, designed to generate regular revenue and attract new audiences.
The professional golf industry also exemplifies this financialization. The creation of the LIV Golf circuit, supported by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), has introduced an investment logic similar to that of major professional leagues.
In these disciplines, sports competitions are gradually becoming financial assets, valued based on their ability to generate increasing media rights and long-term commercial partnerships. This shift is concentrating resources in a limited number of sports capable of attracting institutional investors and global broadcasters.
On the other hand, many Olympic disciplines and amateur sports still rely heavily on public funding and national sports structures. Their balance is mainly supported by sports grants, Olympic programs, and government subsidies.
The economic divide between different sports is primarily due to their ability to generate commercial revenues. Sports with high media exposure attract broadcasters, sponsors, and institutional investors, while less visible disciplines struggle to establish an autonomous economic model and remain dependent on public funding.
This dynamic has created a two-tiered sports system. On one hand, a financialized sport focused on major professional leagues and highly mediated disciplines, whose economic value is rapidly increasing. On the other hand, an institutional sport, including most Olympic disciplines and amateur sports, where the balance still relies on sports federations and public budgets.
The paradox of contemporary sports lies in this economic duality. The global sports economy is estimated to be between 400 and 600 billion dollars annually, reflecting a significant transformation in the sports system. The question arises whether resources should continue to concentrate in the most profitable sports, potentially weakening a portion of the sports system, or if less visible but essential disciplines justify sustained public support.
