Industry Profile: Sports & Recreation
This guide will help you find the information you need to start working in British Columbia. You can use the menu buttons to move between sections of the guide.
Introduction
Participation in sports (athletes, spectators, coaches, referees administrators)
In BC, there are estimated 800,000 participants in amateur sports (SportBC).
Across Canada one-quarter (27%) of adults (18 years and older) participated in sport in 2019-2021. A substantially higher percentage of men (36%) participate in sport compared to women (19%).
Participation generally decreases considerably with increasing age (i.e., from 44% of 18 to 24 year olds to 16% of adults 65 years and older).
Source: 2019-2021 Physical Activity Monitor (Adult Focus)
According to Canadian parents, 74% of children, between the ages of 5 and 17, participate in sport with a higher proportion of young children (age 5-12) compared to older children (age 13-17) (this number increases to 81% in British Columbia).
Statistics Canada: British Columbia: Regular participation in sports
More Canadians involved in amateur sport as coaches, referees, administrators, and spectators.
In addition to participation in amateur sport, Canadians are also involved in sport indirectly as coaches, referees, umpires, administrators, and spectators. According to the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute’s 2020 Sport Monitor, over one-quarter (27%) of adults report volunteering in an activity related to sport in the 12 months prior to the survey.
It is estimated that more than 1.8 million Canadians volunteer in organized sport, representing 18% of all Canadian volunteers. The contribution of volunteers helps to ensure that sport programming is more accessible and affordable, by lowering operational costs of service providers.
Immigrants make up 20% of all people working in Canada as sports coaches. There are more than 2,800 immigrants working as athletes, coaches, officials and referees across the country.