How the covid pandemic has impacted the Hong Kong sports ecosystem

Purpose This paper aims to look into how the sports ecosystem in Hong Kong was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic as the case of Hong Kong is unique from many other developed cities. Parallel to the attack of the pandemic, the period between 2019 and 2022 has also seen a major social unrest and an abrupt change of political landscape that could have unneglectable influence on the long-term development of sports in the city. Design/methodology/approach In view of the limitation in data and material that are available shortly after the period of study, the paper compares regular government statistics before and during the period to reflect the notable changes that were brought about by the anti-COVID measures and subsequently the demographic change resulting from the mixed impact of the global pandemic and local politics. Views of relevant stakeholders were also sought to formulate and verify the observations and conclusions of the paper. Findings This paper finds the sports ecosystem of Hong Kong recovered quickly and effectively from the hit of the COVID pandemic and reveals at the same time that the demographic change incurred mainly by the social unrest and its aftermath could have a longer impact on the city’s sports development. Originality/value This paper is one of the early works to study sports development in Hong Kong from a social-political perspective.