Sunday, 27-09-26
Indonesia is looking at its sports sector as a potential source of new investment and economic growth, with the global sport industry estimated at US$521 billion, or around Rp8,000 trillion.
The opportunity extends beyond sports itself. Government officials and economists see potential across sports tourism, apparel, footwear, recreational activities, football and badminton, while recent consumer data shows growing participation in several sports in Indonesia.
Indonesia’s Sports Industry Eyes a Bigger Economic Role
Minister of Investment and Downstreaming and BKPM Head Rosan Perkasa Roeslani said cooperation between the Ministry of Investment/BKPM and the Ministry of Youth and Sports (Kemenpora) could strengthen investment opportunities in the sports industry.
Rosan estimated the sport industry at US$521 billion, equivalent to around Rp8,000 trillion. He said investment in sports could create wider social and economic effects, including benefits for tourism and other industries.
“The impact is not only on cities that host these activities, but also on the economy as a whole. It is not only about sports, but also has an impact on tourism and other industries,” Rosan said in Jakarta on August 29, 2026, as quoted by Antara.
Youth and Sports Minister Erick Thohir also highlighted the scale and growth of the global industry. According to Erick, the sport industry is worth around US$521 billion or Rp8,000 trillion and grows by about 8% annually.
He added that sport tourism represents another significant market, with a value of nearly US$600 billion and significant growth.
The figures cited by the government describe a large global industry that Indonesia wants to capture more value from. However, economists say the country’s existing sports industry remains relatively small compared with the potential being discussed.
Why Indonesia’s Sports Market Has Room to Grow
Economist Wijayanto Samirin of Paramadina University said the economic potential of sports could be significant if Indonesia succeeds in developing sports as an industry, similar to more developed markets.
He estimated that the sports industry currently contributes less than 0.2% of Indonesia’s GDP. By comparison, the contribution is estimated to be above 2.5% of GDP in the UK and 5% in the US.
“The sports sector has extraordinary potential for the economy. This potential can only be realized if we succeed in turning sports into an industry, as in the UK and the US. Currently, the role of the sports industry in Indonesia is estimated to still be below 0.2% of GDP. Compare this with the UK and US, which are estimated to have reached above 2.5% and 5% of GDP,” Wijayanto told Kumparan on August 30.
Wijayanto also said regulation and incentives would be important to attract investors. He pointed to regular competition from an early age, regulatory integrity, and fiscal and non-fiscal incentives for businesses involved in the sector.
“The requirements for the sports industry to develop are regular sports competitions from an early age, regulations with integrity, and fiscal and non-fiscal incentives for the businesses involved. Regarding the amount of investment required, it needs to be calculated in depth; it seems that it will be far below Rp8,000 trillion,” he said.
Economist Yusuf Rendy Manilet of CORE Indonesia said sports has not yet become a major pillar of national investment. However, he said Indonesia has several advantages that could support the development of the industry.
Indonesia has a large domestic market, a strong manufacturing base for apparel and footwear, and opportunities in football, badminton, recreational sports and sport tourism.
“The problem is how these advantages can be transformed into an industry that generates revenue sustainably,” Yusuf said.
Government Moves to Attract Sports Investment
A concrete policy step came on August 28, 2026, when BKPM and Kemenpora signed a Memorandum of Understanding on risk-based business licensing and investment development in the sports sector.
The agreement is designed to strengthen cooperation between the two institutions while creating more effective licensing services and expanding investment opportunities across sports-related businesses.
The cooperation covers risk-based business licensing policies, improvements to services and supervision through the Online Single Submission (OSS) system, human-resource development, and the exchange of licensing data and information.
It also includes efforts to identify investment opportunities and promote investment in sports, with the broader aim of strengthening the national sports industry ecosystem and providing greater certainty for businesses.
Rosan said regulatory certainty is important for building the investment ecosystem. Under Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025, the OSS system can automatically issue a business license when licensing from another ministry has not been issued within the agreed service-level agreement (SLA) period.
“With Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025, we have the authority that if, within the time agreed according to the service level agreement (SLA), a permit from another ministry has not been issued, the OSS system automatically issues the permit. This also provides certainty from the licensing side. Since this provision was implemented, we have issued more than 250 permits through the positive fiction mechanism,” Rosan said.
The government’s approach therefore focuses not only on promoting sports as an economic activity, but also on reducing licensing uncertainty and improving coordination between institutions.
Sports and Consumer Activity Show Stronger Demand
Recent activity data provides another indication of how sports participation is changing in Indonesia.
Garmin’s 2025 Connect Data Report found that activity among its users in Indonesia was increasingly concentrated around running, walking and strength training. Strength training grew by 65% in Indonesia during 2025, reaching 2,367,843 recorded activities.
Globally, strength training increased 29%, while growth in Asia reached 27%. For the first time, strength training overtook cycling to become one of Asia’s three largest sports activities in the report.
Padel showed an even sharper increase in Indonesia. Garmin recorded a 1,684% increase in user activity compared with the previous year. Track running grew 124%, while tennis increased 113%.
Garmin also recorded an increase in average daily steps among Indonesian users. The country reached 5,818 average daily steps in 2025, an increase of 8.24% from the previous year.
Running is also expanding through communities. Data from Strava, cited by Kontan, showed that the number of running communities in Indonesia increased 5.8 times compared with the previous year.
The same Strava data showed that local sports products are gaining visibility. Indonesian running shoe brand Ortuseight ranked among the three most-used shoe brands by Strava users in Indonesia, competing with global brands such as Asics and Adidas.
What Could Unlock Indonesia’s Sports Industry
The growing participation in sports creates a wider potential market, but economists say participation alone is not enough to build a large industry.
Wijayanto emphasized the need for regular sports competitions, stronger regulation and fiscal and non-fiscal incentives. He also questioned whether the Rp8,000 trillion figure should be treated as the amount of investment Indonesia would actually require, arguing that the necessary investment could be much lower.
Meanwhile, the government is focusing on licensing, investment facilitation, human resources, data exchange and investment promotion through the BKPM-Kemenpora cooperation.
The potential also extends beyond traditional sporting activities. Rosan said investment in sports could benefit tourism and other industries, while Erick highlighted sport tourism as a market worth nearly US$600 billion globally.
The combination of a large domestic consumer base, established apparel and footwear manufacturing, growing sports participation and government efforts to improve the investment ecosystem provides several areas for businesses to watch.
At the same time, the gap between Indonesia’s estimated sports-industry contribution of below 0.2% of GDP and the higher shares cited for the UK and US remains a key measure of how much room there is for the sector to develop.
This article is a summary of two original articles. The full versions can be read at the following links:
https://www.tempo.co/ekonomi/potensi-investasi-industri-olahraga-ri-rp-8-000-t-2284579
https://esqnews.id/berita/survei-jakpat-75-orang-senang-pakai-produk-olahraga-lokal
This article was created with AI assistance.
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