I. Interpretation of the Policy’s Core Content and Evolution

1.1  Policy Highlights and Innovative Breakthroughs

The General Office of the State Council recently released the “Opinions on Unleashing the Potential of Sports Consumption and Further Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Sports Industry” ( Guobanfa [ 2025 ] No. 31 ) , a milestone document for the development of China’s sports industry. The document sets the ambitious goal of exceeding 7 trillion yuan in total sports industry revenue by 2030 and lays out 20 specific measures focused on six key areas : expanding supply, stimulating demand, strengthening key players, cultivating growth areas, strengthening support, and enhancing guarantees .

Highlights of policy innovation include :

Special policies for the development of the event economy : For the first time, it is clearly proposed to introduce special policies for the development of the event economy, build a multi-event and multi-level event system, and support the inclusion of events in the Olympic Games points system .

Upgrade outdoor sports planning : Formulate a new round of outdoor sports industry development plan, and differentiate the development of outdoor sports such as mountain outdoor, water, automobile and motorcycle, and aviation .

Digital Sports Innovation : Promote the ” Data Elements × Sports ” action, support the application of big data and artificial intelligence in the field of sports, and accelerate the construction of high-quality data sets in the field of sports .

Breakthrough in financial support : Encourage sports companies to go public and refinance, issue bonds, and securitize assets, and support the issuance of sports industry REITs .

1.2  Policy History and Evolutionary Logic

my country’s sports industry policy has gone through three key development stages:

Initial stage (2014-2019) : In 2014 , the State Council’s “Several Opinions on Accelerating the Development of the Sports Industry and Promoting Sports Consumption” positioned the sports industry as a ” green industry and sunrise industry ” for the first time , and proposed a goal of reaching an industry scale of 5 trillion yuan by 2025 .

Rapid Development Stage (2020-2024) : During the 13th Five-Year Plan period, the sports industry’s added value will achieve a compound annual growth rate of 16.5% , and the average annual growth rate of its total scale in the past five years has exceeded 10% .

High-quality development stage (2025-2030) : This “Opinion” marks the entry of the sports industry into a systematic and refined development stage, and the policy focus will shift from scale expansion to quality improvement and structural optimization .

The policy evolution shows obvious characteristics of ” from macro to micro, from single to systematic, from scale to quality ” , reflecting the country’s deepening understanding of the sports industry and the continuous improvement of its strategic positioning.

2. Economic Benefit Forecast and Quantitative Analysis

2.1  Direct economic driving effect

According to policy targets, China’s sports industry needs to maintain an average annual compound growth rate of approximately 12% from 2025 to 2030 , reaching a scale of 7 trillion yuan by 2030. This growth will have the following specific economic impacts:

Growth forecast for each segment :

Sports event economy : The development of professional and branded events will drive the entire industry chain, including event operations, copyright transactions, and derivative product development, and is expected to create an additional market of 1.2 trillion yuan .

Outdoor sports industry : Sub-sectors such as mountain outdoor, water sports, and aviation sports are expected to achieve an average annual growth of more than 20% , forming a market size of 800 billion yuan .

Sports equipment upgrade : The demand for intelligent and personalized sports equipment has exploded, which is expected to drive a 500 billion yuan high-end sports equipment market .

Regional economic growth :

Key regions such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will form a sports industry agglomeration effect

Second- and third-tier cities can drive local consumption growth by more than 30% through special events ( such as the ” Village Super League ” and ” Scottish Super League ” models ) .

2.2  Indirect economic multiplier effect

The special nature of the sports industry determines its significant industrial linkage effects and employment creation capabilities :

Industrial linkage effect :

Integration of sports and tourism : Every 1 yuan spent on sports can drive 4.3 yuan of spending on surrounding tourism, catering, accommodation, etc.

Integration of sports and medicine : The sports and health industry will form a trillion-level market, and the demand for the construction of community sports and health centers will surge .

Integration of sports and science‌ : Fields such as smart wearables and sports technology will usher in explosive growth .

Job Creation Forecast‌ :

Direct employment: Every RMB 100 million increase in sports industry can create about 800 direct jobs .

Indirect employment: Taking into account the driving force of related industries, the total employment multiplier effect can reach 1:5.3 .

Key areas: Sports training, event operations, venue services and other fields will become the main force for employment growth .

III. Analysis of Social Benefits and Impact on People’s Livelihood

3.1  Booster for Healthy China Construction

The implementation of the policy will have far-reaching social impacts:

Promoting national fitness : By building a higher-level public service system for national fitness, it is expected that by 2030 , the proportion of people regularly participating in physical exercise will increase to more than 45% .

Chronic disease prevention and control : The promotion of the integrated sports and medical model can reduce the incidence of sports-related chronic diseases by 15%-20% .

Elderly health : The construction of an elderly-friendly sports activity platform will benefit 280 million elderly people .

3.2  Enhancement of cultural soft power

Sports and cultural exports : The export of traditional Chinese sports such as martial arts and Go will enhance cultural influence .

Youth Development : The improvement of the public welfare youth event system will help 120 million young people master sports skills .

Spiritual Shaping : The ” Ode to the Chinese Sports Spirit ” series of activities will reach more than 500 million people .

4. Eight golden opportunities for sports industry practitioners

4.1  Opportunities across the entire event economy chain

Event IP development : Cultivate events with independent intellectual property rights and strive to include them in the ” Olympic Points Competition System . “

Professionalization of event services : Optimization of professional services such as event approval, security, and copyright transactions .

Commercialization of grassroots events : Drawing on the ” village super ” model, creating regional specialty event IPs .

4.2  Blue Ocean of Outdoor Sports Industry

Outdoor destination construction : Participate in the development of high-quality outdoor sports destinations such as mountain outdoor and water sports .

Equipment upgrade : Seize the opportunity to upgrade ice and snow equipment and outdoor equipment .

Low-altitude economy : layout of emerging fields such as aviation model sports and simulated flight .

4.3  Digital Sports Innovation Space

Smart sports equipment : Develop smart training equipment based on AI and IoT technologies .

Virtual events : exploring new models that combine e-sports events with traditional sports .

Data Services : Provide value-added services such as sports big data analysis and sports performance evaluation .

4.4  Development of the Silver Sports Market

Elderly-friendly product development : Designing sports equipment and fitness courses suitable for the elderly .

Operation of senior sports events : Create senior sports event brands such as gateball and aerobics .

Integration of sports and health care : Developing integrated services such as sports rehabilitation and health management .

4.5  Sports + Cross-border Integration

Integration of sports and tourism : Develop themed products such as ” Travel with Events ” .

Integration of sports and education : Expanding the youth sports training market .

Integration of sports and medicine : Build community sports and health centers to provide exercise prescription services .

4.6  Sports Finance Innovation

REITs Investment : Participate in sports stadium infrastructure REITs projects .

Consumer finance : Develop financial products such as sports consumption installment plans and insurance .

Digital RMB Application : Explore the application of smart contracts in sports prepaid consumption .

4.7  Transformation and Upgrading of Manufacturing Industry

High-end equipment manufacturing : research and development of professional equipment for competitive sports .

Intelligent transformation : Promoting the digital transformation of sports factories .

Brand building : Create domestic ” trendy brands ” and participate in the selection of ” China’s Famous Consumer Products ” .

4.8  International Development Path

Overseas market expansion : Participate in international cooperation projects such as the ” Ice and Snow Silk Road ” .

Event introduction : Apply for hosting international events and enhance operational capabilities .

Cultural export : Promote the export of traditional Chinese sports .

V. Implementation Suggestions

5.1  Direction of corporate strategic adjustment

Focus on niche areas : Find differentiated positioning in the 7 trillion market .

Strengthen investment in science and technology : embrace technological changes such as AI and big data .

Focus on compliant operations : Adapt to regulatory requirements such as event approval and prepaid funds management .

5.2  Policy Dividend Capture Strategy

Project application : Pay attention to support policies such as sports consumption coupons and equipment renewal subsidies .

Resource integration : Leverage platforms such as the China International Import Expo and the China Sports Expo to expand business opportunities .

Regional layout : Priority will be given to settling and developing in sports industry clusters .

The release of this “Opinion” marks the beginning of a golden period of high-quality development for China’s sports industry. For practitioners, it’s crucial to recognize the enormous potential of the 7 trillion yuan market while also recognizing the industry’s ongoing evolution toward specialization, refinement, and high quality. Only by accurately grasping policy guidance, identifying our own unique positioning, and continuously innovating and changing can we seize opportunities in the new wave of development in the sports industry. The next five years will be a critical window for sports companies to transform and upgrade, and those who plan and act early will gain a decisive advantage .