Americans Spend More Than $100 Billion on Athletics

By John Harrington Updated Jan 12, 8:20AM EST · Published Sep 11, 10:10AM EDT

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Americans Spend More Than $100 Billion on Athletics — © Thinkstock

Americans spent more than $100 billion over the past year on sports events, athletic equipment and gym memberships, according to a new report released Monday by online credit card marketplace CreditCards.com.

Sports events — including the price for tickets, transportation and food and beverages — comprised the majority of the spending, with 79 million people shelling out $56 billion in the past 12 months, according to Austin, Texas-based CreditCards.com.

Americans also opened their wallets for athletic equipment, with more than $33 billion spent, according to the report. Gym membership fees also totaled $19 billion in the past 12 months.

The likelihood of spending on sporting events, athletic equipment and gym memberships in the past year increases with income and education. For instance, 68% of those with a college degree spent money on at least one of these items, compared with 41% of those with a high school diploma. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of those with income above $75,000 a year spent money on at least one of these items, and 14% said they spent on all three. The percentages drop to 41% and 2%, respectively, for those earning $30,000 or less a year.

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Parents are more likely than nonparents to have spent money on athletic equipment over the past year. Nearly half (46%) of those with children under age 18 indicated spending money in that category, compared with 22% of those without children. The same is true for those attending a sports event, with 46% of those with young children who paid to see an event in person, versus 28% of those without kids.

Millennials are the most likely cohort to have spent money on the gym in the past 12 months. Some 36% of those aged 18 to 36 said they paid for a gym membership, twice as many as those who are older.

The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, which conducted telephone interviews with 1,003 adults living in the continental United States from August 17 to 20.

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About the Author John Harrington →

I'm a journalist who started my career as a sportswriter, covering professional, college, and high school sports. I pivoted into business news, working for the biggest newspapers in New Jersey, including The Record, Star-Ledger and Asbury Park Press. I was an editor at the weekly publication Crain’s New York Business and served on several editorial teams at Bloomberg News. I’ve been a part of 24/7 Wall St. since 2017, writing about politics, history, sports, health, the environment, finance, culture, breaking news, and current events. I'm a graduate of Rutgers University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History.