Scots The Focus Of Uefa Social Impact Study
Participation in grassroots football delivers more than £1bn of positive value to Scottish society, according to the results of a pioneering study jointly commissioned by UEFA and the Scottish Football Association (SFA).
The project findings are based on a custom model, backed by European academics, which seeks to value the social return of investment in the grassroots game.
As well as a total social return of £1.25bn, the report also highlights a direct economic impact of over £200m, over £300m in social benefits and a preventative health spend of almost £700m from the grassroots game in Scotland.
The valuation was conducted as part of the UEFA GROW programme, which was launched in 2015 to support national associations in increasing participation in grassroots football throughout Europe.
The current impact of total participants in Scotland according to new UEFA study. pic.twitter.com/oBPJzGPzzU
— Scottish FA (@ScottishFA) October 30, 2018
Scotland is one of the first countries to undertake the SROI model – a central plank of the Europe-wide programme, which UEFA says is designed “to create a step-change in grassroots funding by providing unique and tangible evidence that investing in mass participation has a significant impact in terms of economic value, social and health benefits.”
Zoran Lakovic, UEFA National Associations director, added: “UEFA GROW offers tailor-made consultation services to our national associations in the areas that are most relevant for football organisations, from building a better image of football, to increasing revenue opportunities and getting more people to play our beautiful game. We are pleased to have worked in collaboration with the Scottish FA and its key stakeholders to provide tangible evidence of its social return on investment.”
Among the Scottish findings were significant preventative healthcare savings, including around £40m of savings on mental health, calculated at around 5,000 cases prevented, almost £25m in cardiovascular disease and £10m in type-2 diabetes.
The game is also credited with making a significant contribution to crime reduction in Scotland, with proof that is provides benefits to those not in employment, education or training, and improves education and job creation.
Commenting on the study, Ian Maxwell, Scottish FA chief executive, said: “We have known for decades the positive impact football as the national sport has on the population: it can inspire a nation, unite families and entire communities, and make society a better place.
“The findings in the UEFA GROW report outline the extent to which football is a force for good in helping to deliver the Scottish Government’s health and wellbeing agenda, and also the dramatic impact the national game has on the economy.
“We committed to this project to reaffirm football’s place as an essential fabric of Scottish society and we are pleased to present these findings to the Scottish Government.”
Joe FitzPatrick, minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing in Scotland, added: “This report is an important piece of work, and the culmination of a unique partnership between the Scottish Government, sportscotland, the Scottish FA and UEFA over many months to produce robust evidence of football’s contribution to our communities and society.”
