Buoyant Sports Industry Poised For Strong Growth

Singapore, 16 April 2008 - In a bid to showcase the strong growth opportunities in the buoyant Singapore sports industry, the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) engaged some 170 business leaders at the 3rd CEO Gala Dinner held at Sentosa this evening. Titled “Sporting Success: What it means for your Business”, the event was well attended by chief executive officers of multinational corporations and small-medium enterprises, ambassadors and representatives from government agencies. Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) graced the occasion as the Guest-of-Honour.

The Singapore sports industry today paints a sophisticated and vibrant outlook full of new opportunities till 2015. More than half of Singapore’s population is involved in sports once a week; there is a vibrant calendar of over 60 international and numerous other community sports events in Singapore; greater variety of sports offerings beyond traditional sports as well as greater professionalism in sports management. Building on this strong foundation, major sports initiatives will catalyse the growth of multiple sectors across the sports industry. These include the Sports Hub ? the largest sports infrastructure Public-Private-Partnership project, the inaugural Youth Olympic Games, the world’s first Formula One night race and the Changi Motor racetrack.

Minister Vivian in his address reinforced the government’s commitment to support the growth of the sports industry. He said, “The Government is committed to growing a self-sustaining sports industry ecosystem that will contribute $2 billion in Gross Domestic Product and create 20,000 jobs by 2015. We are seeing new growth opportunities in construction, media and broadcasting, events management, sponsorship and marketing, retail and merchandising, sports medicine & sports science, education & training, and the motor sports industry.”

Leading the charge is the SSC together with the Economic Development Board, to grow the sports industry in sports entertainment, services and products. SSC will also be collaborating with the Media Development Authority (MDA) to develop a business ecosystem of sports media. In addition, other key areas being developed include events, education and training academies, sports medicine and sports science, professional services.

Developing the sports media and broadcasting sector

At the event, the Minister announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the SSC and MDA. The MOU is a move to develop the sports media and broadcasting sector that is a highly value added and vital component to grow Singapore?s sports industry. Said Dr Balakrishnan “The SSC and the MDA will provide a total initial fund of S$1 million to seed the development of the sports media and broadcasting industry. This initiative will serve two purposes. First, it will create new jobs with specialist skills in sports journalism, sports filming and production, media rights management, intellectual property rights, sports commentating, sports public relations and sports tourism. Second, it will enlarge the international footprint and value of local sports events and facilitate the production of Singapore sports content. Industry players such as broadcasters and content companies will also play a part through participation in a ‘Sports Media Business Group’ which will be co-led by the SSC and MDA.”

Mr Oon Jin Teik, Chief Executive Officer, SSC said, “As the sports industry in Singapore develops in sophistication, we will see more sectors, such as this (sports media and broadcasting) overlapping with sports. A thriving sports media and broadcasting sector is vital to the overall development of the sports industry. With it, we will be able to generate more interest in sports, attract more private sector involvement, provide consumers with more sports content choices on more distribution platforms, which will ultimately help us to build a strong sports culture in Singapore.”

Added Dr Christopher Chia, Chief Executive Officer, MDA, “Globally, sports media such as the production, broadcasting, trading of sports rights and sports related content is a significant component of the overall media industry. Singapore will soon be the platform for many major international sports events and this is a genre that could see significant growth in coming years. We want to leverage on this opportunity to spur the production of more sports content and facilitate the carriage of such content on more distribution platforms beyond traditional broadcast media, including new media channels. This initiative will extend the shelf-life of local sports events and increase its reach to a wider audience.”

Corporate Sector Participation is key to growing the sports industry

While the government continues to seed the growth of the industry, corporate sector participation is also key. During the bid for the Youth Olympic Games, over 700 companies pledged their support. Said Minister Vivian at the CEO Gala Dinner, “While the government will seed the growth of the industry, ultimately, this has to be driven by the private sector. I am optimistic that the sports industry is primed for good growth from now till 2015 as we are beginning to see growing corporate sector participation and involvement in sports. For example, over 700 companies pledged their support for the Youth Olympic Games, through the Business Times. The sports industry is on an exponential growth path that will benefit the business community and I strongly urge all of you here this evening to ride this wave of opportunity.”