Download - Real estate | KPMG | GLOBAL
GOLF ADVISORY PRACTICE IN EMA
Golf participation in Europe 2011
golfbusinesscommunity.com
Golf participation in Europe 2011 / Golf Advisory Practice in EMA
Headline facts
• Aftermorethan20yearsofgrowth,Europe’sgolfmarketexperiencedthefirstdeclineingolfparticipation,withanetlossof46,000registeredplayersin2011.
• Ninecountriesexperiencedadeclineinthenumberofregisteredgolfers,butthemostsignificantfallswereinthreelargegolfmarkets:UK&Ireland-42,700(-3.1%),wherethenumberofgolfershasbeenfallingsince2007,Sweden-21,000(-4.1%)andSpain-9,700(-2.9%).
• SomecountrieshavecounterbalancedEurope’soveralldeclineingolfparticipation:Germany +10,800(1.8%),theNetherlands+7,600(2.2%),Finland+4,600(3.6%)andEasternEurope’s mostestablishedgolfmarket,theCzechRepublic+3,500(7.6%).
• Despitetheirpotential,thegrowthindemandfor golfinEasternEuropeancountrieswasinsignificant,inabsoluteterms,in2011.
• German-speakingcountries1andtheNetherlands,remainflagshipmarketsforfemaleparticipation,withmorethan30%ofplayersbeingwomen.Femaleparticipationisalsohighinthesecountriesinabsoluteterms,providingatotalof430,000womengolfers(40%ofthetotalinEurope).
• Someemergingmarketsencouragegolfparticipationthroughjuniorprogrammes,whichisreflectedinthenotablyhighshareofjuniorgolfersinsomecountries(e.g.Turkey,Serbia,Greece).Whileinabsolutetermsthisrepresentsonlyafewthousandyoungplayers,thisisapotentiallyimportantfactorinthefuturedevelopmentofthegameinthesecountries.
• Nocountriesexperiencedasignificantgrowthin golfsupply,butsomenewcoursesopenedinGermany,theNetherlands,theCzechRepublicandPoland,forexample.
Development of golf participation in Europe
Attheendof2011,therewereatotalof6,740golfcoursesandnearly4.4millionregisteredplayersinEurope,resultinginanaverageparticipationrateof0.73%(basedonatotalpopulationof600million)2.
Followingdynamicgrowth(6%peryear)sincethe1980’s,andamodestincrease(1-2%)inthelastfiveyears,Europe’sgolfmarketenteredadownturnin2011.Whilethenumberofgolfcourseshasremainedstagnant,participationinthegamestartedtodecrease,resultinginanetlossof46,000registeredgolferslastyear.
ItisgenerallybelievedthatthestagnationofEurope’sgolfmarketcanbeattributedtotwoprincipalfactors:• Significantdecreaseinregisteredgolfersinsomeof
Europe’slargestgolfmarkets,notablytheUK&Ireland;• LackofdynamicgrowthinEurope’semergingmarkets
(e.g.EasternEuropeandtheSouth-EastMediterranean).
ItshouldbehighlightedhoweverthatintheUK&Irelandgolfersdonotneedtoberegisteredtoplay,and,assuch,thereductionofregisteredplayerscouldbeattributedtocancellationsofclubmemberships.Manyoftheseso-called“casualgolfers”continuetoplaythegameonagreen-fee(dailypay-and-playfee)basis,onwhichtherearen’tanyaccuratestatisticsavailable.Assuch,althoughthesignificantdropinregisteredgolfersisaclearindicationofdecreasingdemand,itishardertomeasuretheimpactonthenumber ofrounds.
Play
ers
5,0004,5004,0003,5003,0002,5002,0001,5001,000
5000
Cour
ses
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
1985
1987
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
2005
2007
2009
2011
� Players � Courses
Thou
sand
s
Development of golf in Europe 2001 – 2011
Source: EGA and local golf federations with KPMG elaboration
1 Germany,AustriaandSwitzerland2 Wehaveonlyconsideredthepopulationofcountrieswithatleastonegolfcourse.
While golf is not considered a bellwether for economic conditions in Europe, there is little doubt of the cause-and-effect link between the economy and the success of golf as a participation sport. The number of golfers in Europe has more than doubled in the past 25 years, buoyed by economic growth and the spread of the game to both developed and emerging economies. However, in 2011, European golf experienced its first fall in participation in more than two decades. Which countries lost golfers in 2011, and why? Which countries enjoyed golfing growth? This snapshot report of golf participation in Europe will provide an insight into recent trends across the region, based on available statistics.
Supply and demand characteristics in 2011
ThegolfmarketinEuroperemainsconcentrated,with92%ofallgolfersand90%ofcoursesfocusedinonly10countries.TheUK&IrelandalonehavethehighestshareofdemandinEuropewith30%ofplayersandthehighestshareofsupplywith44%ofcourses.
� UK & Ireland 44%� Germany 10%� France 9%� Sweden 7%� Spain 5%� Italy 4%� Netherlands 3%� Denmark 3%� Norway 3%� Austria 5%� Other 10%
Distribution of supply in Europe
� UK & Ireland 30%� Germany 14%� Sweden 11%� France 9%� Netherlands 8%� Spain 8%� Denmark 4%� Finland 3%� Norway 3%� Austria 2%� Other 8%
Distribution of demand in Europe
Source: EGA and local federations, with KPMG elaboration
ThefollowingmapsindicatethematurityofEurope’sgolfmarkets,accordingtothesizeofpopulationpergolfcourse,andtheproportionofthepopulationplayinggolf.
Market demand:Participation rate(affiliated golfers only)
Market supply: Population per golf course
� mature ≤ 25,000 people� developed 25,000 – 100,000� growing 100,000 – 300,000� infant ≥ 300,000
� mature ≥ 5%� developed 1%-5%� growing 0.2%-1%� infant ≤ 0.2%
Source: EGA, local golf federations and Eurostat, with KPMG elaboration
InrecentyearsgolfsupplyanddemandhasbeenrelativelystableinmostEuropeancountries,resultinginlittlechangeinmarketmaturity.TheUKandIrelandremainEurope’smostmaturemarkets,alongwiththeNordiccountries.Infact,Sweden,Iceland,Denmark,FinlandandNorwayhavethehighestparticipationratesinEurope,paralleledwithastrongsupplyrelativetothepopulationsize.
� Male � Female � Juniors
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Croatia* 86 14
Poland 80 15 6
UK & Ireland 75 15 10
Portugal 73 19 9
Hungary 71 19 10
Cyprus 70 24 6
Bulgaria 70 11 19
Lithuania 69 15 17
Estonia 67 24 9
Latvia 66 11 23
Norway 66 24 11
Italy 64 24 12
Netherlands 64 31 5
Denmark 63 29 8
France 63 26 11
Sweden 62 27 11
Greece 62 13 25
Iceland 62 25 14
Romania* 61 15 24
Spain 67 29 5
Slovakia 61 26 13
Finland 60 27 13
Belgium 59 29 12
Czech Rep. 59 27 15
Slovenia 58 28 14
Switzerland 58 33 9
Luxembourg 57 29 13
Germany 56 35 9
Austria 55 35 10
Serbia 55 11 34
Turkey 34 14 52
Composition of golfers in countries across Europe
*2010 data, no data available on 2011Source: EGA and local federations, with KPMG elaboration
Althoughthecompositionofgolferschangedinsomecountriesin2011,malegolferscontinuetodominateEurope’sgolfmarket,representingapproximately65%ofallplayers.Womenandjuniorgolfersmakeup25%and10%ofthetotal,respectively.
WhiletotalfemaleregistrationshavebeendecreasingacrossEuropein2011byabout2%,Germany,Switzerland,FinlandandtheCzechRepublicmanagedtonotablyincreasethenumberoftheirfemalegolfers–Germanybymorethan5,700,andthelatterthreeby1,000-1,400each.
©2012KPMGTanácsadóKft.,aHungarianlimitedliabilitycompanyandamemberfirmoftheKPMGnetworkofindependentmemberfirmsaffiliatedwith KPMGInternationalCooperative(“KPMGInternational”),aSwissentity.Allrightsreserved.
German-speakingcountriesandtheNetherlandsremaintheflagshipmarketsforfemaleparticipation,withmorethan30%oftheirplayersbeingwomen.GermanyandtheNetherlandsarenotonlyamongthetop-fivecountriesintermsofproportionofwomengolfers,butalsoinabsoluteterms:bothcountriesboastsignificantnumbersoffemaleplayers.
0 50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 250,000
Germany 214,663
UK & Ireland 193,564
Sweden 131,836
Netherlands 110,345
France 104,315
Top five countries in terms of absolute female golfers
25% 27% 29% 31% 33% 35% 37%
Germany 35%
Austria 35%
Switzerland 33%
Netherlands 31%
Denmark 29%
Top five countries in terms of share of female golfers (compared to all golfers in the country)
Source: EGA and local federations, with KPMG elaboration
Thejuniorgamealsodroppedlastyear,withthethree largestmarkets,theUK&Ireland,SwedenandGermanyrecordingatotaldecreaseof25,000inthenumberofjuniorgolfersin2011.
Althoughstartingfromalowbase,Bulgaria,Serbia,SlovakiaandGreecehaveseenapositiveshifttowardsahighercompositionofjuniorgolfers.Turkeyisstillexperiencingjuniorgrowthfromthe”GolfJuniorLeague“initiative,havingaddedmorethan900golferssincetheprogrammewasintroducedin2009.
0 50,000 100,000 150,000
UK & Ireland 132,855
Sweden 53,901
Germany 52,881
France 46,107
Netherlands 17,260
Top five countries in terms of absolute junior golfers
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Turkey 52%
Serbia 34%
Greece 25%
Romania* 24%
Latvia 23%
Top five countries in terms of share of junior golfers (compared to all golfers in the country)
Source: EGA and local federations, with KPMG elaboration
Key initiatives across Europe• Grow the Game of Golfisaninitiativesetupin
conjunctionwithanumberoforganisationsincludingtheEGCOA,TheEuropeanTour,andtheEGIAwiththecommongoalofinspiringandencouraginggolfclubsandassociationstohelpgrowthegamefromagrassrootslevel.Theyadvertisemanyinitiativesfromnationalandlocalbodieswhichhaveprovedsuccessful,indicatingtheneedforstructureandsupporttodevelopthesportfromaparticipationperspective.
• Clubgolfisagovernment-backedinitiativetogiveeverychildinScotlandthechancetoplaygolffollowingthecountry’ssuccessful2014RyderCupbid.Onehundredfortythousandjuniorshavealreadybeenintroducedtotheconcept.
• Germanyisaleadingexampleinencouragingwomentoplay,allowinghigherhandicaps (amaximumof54).
• IntheNetherlands,Kids4Golfisanon-profitorganisationaimedat8-12year-olds,providingfungolfeventsinpublicrecreationareas,withspecialballsandchildfriendlyhole-lengths.
• AgainintheNetherlands,Fun Factories is for childrenaged5-12years,with10-15eventsheldannually.Establishedin2002,therearenow 50participantsateachevent,onaverage.
• Slovenia Plays GolfisapackagedealtheSlovenianGolfAssociationisrunning,whereEUR99enables aplayertoacquirealicenceanda54-handicap. TheschemestartedinApril2011andtherearecurrently1,800playersenrolled,fromwhich 1,000areprojectedtobecomefullclubmembers.
©2012KPMGTanácsadóKft.,aHungarianlimitedliabilitycompanyandamemberfirmoftheKPMGnetworkofindependentmemberfirmsaffiliatedwith KPMGInternationalCooperative(“KPMGInternational”),aSwissentity.Allrightsreserved.
What’s next for golf in Europe?
Whileweexpect2012toremainatoughyearforEurope’sgolfmarket,arecoveryintheEurozoneandanoverallupswingintheworldeconomywouldplayanimportantpartintheuptakeofgolfbynewandreturningplayers.However,thetimingandnatureofsucharecoveryisobviouslydifficulttoforecast.
Someofthecountrieswheregolfcontinuedtogrowin2011–notably,GermanyandFinland–havebenefitedfromrelativelyresilienteconomies,giventhescaleoftheeconomicdownturnacrossEurope,andenduringuncertainties.Thesecountriesremainwellpositionedtoseeagrowthinbothnumbersofplayersand,toalesserextent,courses.
WheregolfhadpreviouslybeentippedtogrowsignificantlywastheemergingmarketsofCentralandEasternEurope(CEE).DespitetheCzechRepublic’simpressivegrowthfigures(7.6%increaseinthenumberofplayerstonearly50,000,andsevennewcourses),demandandcoursedevelopmenthassloweddownacrosstheregion.
However,basedonoursurveyofindustryexperts,expectationsfortheCEE–aswellastheMediterraneanregion–remainhigh,followingarecoveryfromtheeconomicdownturn.Onceagain,thetimingishardtopredict.
Thereisnodoubttheapparentdrop-offinthenumberofregisteredgolfersinEurope’slargestgolfmarket,theUKandIreland,wassignificantin2011,andfollowsanongoingtrend.However,itisdifficulttodeterminehowmuchofthisisasaresultofgolfersgivingupclubmembershipsinfavourofplayinggolfonacasualordailyfeebasis,orgivingupthesportaltogether.(UnlikeotherEuropeancountries,golfersintheUKandIrelanddon’thavetoberegistered.)
Thereareseveralinitiativesaimingtooffsetthisnegativetrend.Forexample,theOver45’sProjectisalocalschemethathasbeenrunninginconjunctionwithEnglandGolftoinvolvepeopleagedover45aspartofafitnessandsocial
concept.Significantfundshavebeenallocatedforthisinitiativebetween2009and2013.
Afutureprojectsettoberolledoutin2012isanewconceptwiththeEnglishGolfPartnershipencouragingadultstostartplayingquick,socialgolfwithroundslastingnolongerthan60minutes.Whiletheseareallpositiveexamples,thelackofproperpromotionoftenhindersthesuccessofsuchinitiatives.
InWales,theRyderCupLegacyhasputsignificanteffortintogrowingtheyouthgame,whichsawpeaksin2008.But,justtwoyearsaftertheRyderCup,thereisacallforcontinuedsupportandinvestmentinfreshandnewinitiativestoturnaroundtherecentreductionofjuniorplayers.
WhilemuchofthegolfmarketstagnationinEuropemaybeattributedtotheoveralleconomicclimate,continuedsupportandinvestmentinnewprogrammeswillbeneededtosustaindemandandgeneratefurthergrowthinthegame,especiallyinmatureanddevelopedgolfmarkets.
Golfclubsneedtoproactivelyandeffectivelyfaceuptothechallengingeconomicclimatetoretainmembersorattractnewgolfers.Basedonoursurvey,ratherthanintroducingyouthandfamilypromotionalprogrammes,30-40%ofEurope’soperatorsandclubmanagersactuallyincreasedpricesin2011.Ontheotherhand,morethanhalfofclubshavenotenhancedmarketingefforts–and(somewhatsurprisingly)manyhavenotyetcapitalisedontheopportunitiesprovidedbyonlinemarketingandsocialmedia.
Today,thereisaneedforjointeffortsbyindustrystakeholders–arguablymoresonowthanatanytime inthepasttwodecades.Therefore,whateveraspect oftheindustryyourepresent,weinviteyoutoshare yourthoughts,bestpracticesandcreativeideason www.golfbusinesscommunity.com.
Forclarificationregardingtheresultsofthisreport,[email protected].©
201
2KPMGTan
ácsa
dóKft.,aHun
garia
nlim
itedlia
bilityco
mpa
nyand
am
embe
rfirm
ofthe
KPMGnetworkofin
depe
nden
tmem
berfi
rmsaffiliatedwith
KPMGIn
ternationa
lCoo
perativ
e(“KPMGIn
ternationa
l”),aSwissen
tity.Allrig
htsrese
rved
.
KPMG’s Golf Advisory Practice in Europe, Middle East and AfricaH-1139 Budapest, Váci út 99 Hungary
T:+3618877100 E:[email protected]
Theinformationcontainedhereinisofageneralnatureandisnotintendedtoaddressthecircumstancesofanyparticularindividualorentity.Althoughweendeavourtoprovideaccurateandtimelyinformation,therecanbenoguaranteethatsuchinformationisaccurateasofthedateitisreceivedorthatitwillcontinuetobeaccurateinthefuture.Nooneshouldactonsuchinformationwithoutappropriateprofessionaladviceafterathoroughexaminationoftheparticularsituation.
TheKPMGname,logoand“cuttingthroughcomplexity”areregisteredtrademarksortrademarksofKPMGInternationalCooperative(“KPMGInternational”).
©2012KPMGTanácsadóKft.,aHungarianlimitedliabilitycompanyandamemberfirmoftheKPMGnetworkofindependentmemberfirmsaffiliatedwithKPMGInternationalCooperative(“KPMGInternational”),aSwissentity.Allrightsreserved.
Appendix
Country statistics: Affiliated players and regular golf courses in Europe, 2011
Country Players % Change from 2010
Courses % Change from 2010
Participation rate
Population per golf course
UK & Ireland* 1,326,663 -3.1% 2,989 -0.1% 1.98% 22,388
Germany 610,104 1.8% 708 1.1% 0.75% 115,468
Sweden 491,401 -4.1% 454 -0.4% 5.22% 20,739
France 407,530 -0.7% 578 0.7% 0.65% 109,232
Netherlands 351,640 2.2% 201 4.7% 2.11% 82,865
Spain 328,495 -2.9% 349 1.2% 0.71% 132,243
Denmark 151,185 -0.9% 181 0.6% 2.72% 30,722
Finland 142,184 3.6% 126 0.0% 2.65% 42,661
Norway 121,736 -2.7% 173 -0.6% 2.47% 28,441
Austria 104,490 0.0% 149 -1.3% 1.24% 56,404
Italy 100,548 0.2% 273 1.5% 0.17% 222,075
Switzerland 79,843 4.1% 94 0.0% 1.01% 83,686
Belgium 55,206 3.8% 79 0.0% 0.50% 138,629
Czech Rep. 49,849 7.6% 89 8.5% 0.47% 118,346
Iceland 16,054 3.4% 66 0.0% 5.04% 4,825
Portugal 14,656 0.8% 88 4.8% 0.14% 120,875
Slovenia 8,495 7.5% 13 8.3% 0.41% 157,707
Slovakia 6,732 12.2% 13 8.3% 0.12% 418,098
Turkey 5,649 2.0% 19 5.6% 0.01% 3,880,157
Luxembourg 4,023 -2.1% 6 0.0% 0.79% 85,307
Poland 2,750 0.0% 29 20.8% 0.01% 1,317,243
Estonia 2,088 6.8% 8 14.3% 0.16% 167,524
Hungary 2,028 -19.2% 13 0.0% 0.02% 768,132
Greece 1,780 33.3% 8 14.3% 0.02% 1,413,736
Cyprus 1,227 -9.2% 10 11.1% 0.15% 80,444
Latvia 900 16.1% 3 0.0% 0.04% 743,214
Romania** 551 0.0% 4 0.0% 0.00% 5,353,454
Croatia** 550 0.0% 3 0.0% 0.01% 1,470,712
Bulgaria 535 222.3% 6 50.0% 0.01% 1,250,811
Serbia 440 46.7% 2 100.0% 0.01% 3,638,098
Lithuania 408 -5.1% 6 20.0% 0.01% 540,767
Europe total 4,389,740 -1.0% 6,740 0.7% 0.73% 88,823
*Pleasenotethat,asopposedtomostEuropeancountries,intheUK&Irelandgolfersdonothavetoregistertoplay.Assuch,thereareagoodnumberofadditionalplayerswhoarenotmembersofagolfclubbutregularlyplaygolf.Wehavenotconsideredtheseunregisteredgolfersinourstatistics.**2010data,nodataavailableon2011Sources:EuropeanGolfAssociation,localgolffederationsandEurostat,withKPMGelaboration