The Gym ticking Time Bomb

An over view of gym opening, how has it gone? What do people really think?

• 67.6% of Brits to shun live sporting events once they reopen • 43.2% of facilities have been unable to open at all due to COVID-19 • Only 23% of the public currently feel safe to return once restrictions lift

As the sports industry prepares to reopen its doors to fans, new research has found that clubs across the country face a ticking time-bomb of closures as fans reveal their plans to stay away from live events.

According to the nationally-representative survey into 2,000 members of the public, more than two-thirds (67.6%) of Brits are not comfortable attending live sporting events, such as professional football matches and amateur competitions, once they are able, due to COVID-19 infection risk. The research was carried out by infection control specialist JLA, as part of its “Infection Insights” campaign to raise standards across the industry.

“Still work to do for sports and fi tness clubs”

The research also reveals that many sports and fitness clubs are now approaching a year since they have been able to open at all – further impacting revenues – with 43.2% of facilities reporting that they had been completely unable to reopen due to COVID-19. Concerningly, a further 12% reported that they have been unable to reopen despite having a serious need to trade to stay afloat financially.

Of those involved with sports and fitness clubs, such as players, coaches and gym members, only 23% currently report feeling “safe” to return once restrictions lift. Almost a fifth (18.9%) reported feeling that their local facility did not prioritise infection control, but this did not matter to them, and a further 8% have stopped attending their local clubs altogether because of this.

However, sporting organisations and the public can take a small amount of hope from recent studies carried out into infection risk at sporting facilities, which was revealed to be low according to research led by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.

Ben Gujral, CEO at JLA, commented: “Sports and fitness organisations are so important to our health and wellbeing, whether through enjoying them as a spectator, or getting more active by taking part, making their safe reopening a critical priority.

“However, it is clear that there is still work to do for sports and fitness clubs to build trust amongst their understandably anxious customer base. The industry has had an extremely challenging year, and arguably needs the support of its players, members and fans more than ever before to survive. Simply enough, those that take the time to invest in the reassurance their customers need now will be those that survive, and even thrive, over the coming months.” It was also revealed that the events of 2020 have prompted a nationwide change in attitudes towards hygiene and infection control overall, with 77% of the public holding greater concerns in this area than a year previously – attributing this change directly to COVID-19. On a similar note, more than four in five respondents (80.5%) claimed they would be reassured if they had visible proof that a sports club took infection control seriously, such as independent accreditations or an industry quality mark denoting infection control excellence.

“80.5%

claimed they would be reassured if they had visible proof that a sports club took infection control seriously”