The Relationship Between Public Spending and Employment in the Sports Sector

Objective: This study examines the relationship between public funds allocated to sports and recreation and employment in the sports sector across the EU-27 countries. Materials and Methods: A balanced panel dataset covering the 27 countries for the 2011–2024 period was used; 378 country-year observations were analyzed over the 14-year period. Results: Although the coefficient for same-year expenditures is positive, it is not statistically significant. In the three-year lagged model, the relationship is positive and significant at the 1% level. No significant interaction effect was found for income group. The unemployment rate is negative and strongly significant in all models. Conclusion: No significant relationship was found between public sports and recreation expenditures and sports employment for the same year. The fact that the coefficient with a three-year lag is positive and significant indicates a medium-term relationship. This finding does not suggest that the three-year period represents a causal or singular implementation period.