AOC Chief Executive Officer Matt Carroll has told the National Press Club in Canberra that a $2 billion black hole in sports investment over the next decade threatens to derail Australia’s ambitions for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games and 2026 Commonwealth Games in Victoria.
In his address, Mr Carroll cited the continued and significant decline in Federal Government sport investment, in spite of successive national sport plans and other reviews which identify that sport returns $7 for every $1 invested.
Mr Carroll has proposed a package of measures, including a new partnership between sport and the Government, stand-alone Federal Department of Sport and a national “statement of purpose for sport” to address the decline.
“Successive sports plans over many years have not achieved their ambitions, because they have been funded to fail.
“On the forward projections based on the work we have done with our 44 Member Sports, Australian sport will fall over a financial cliff. Sports are fighting each other for a share of a cake that keeps getting smaller.
“Our analysis shows that based on the forward estimates, there’s a $2 billion shortfall in direct funding to sports across the ten years leading to Brisbane 2032. The shortfall consists of half a billion for participation and $1.5 billion for high performance, spread over the ten years.
“That’s not nearly enough to retain the current levels of sports performance, let alone to maximise the Brisbane 2032 opportunities.
“These are the same sports which are played by more than 13 million Australians and which bring to the table an army of volunteers, coaches and officials. To be clear, this is not funding for the AOC. We ask for none, but it is investment directly to the sports so they can fulfil their mission for the Australian community.
“Every national sports plan recognises the enormous value of sport in tackling the crises in obesity and chronic diseases including mental health problems. Plus, the value of sport in bringing communities together, creating social harmony, creating economic benefit and helping a generation of young people negotiate the future.
“The investment benefits are universally acknowledged and yet the decline continues.
Mr Carroll has proposed:
- A Statement of Purpose for sport which clearly defines where sport sits as a national priority.
- A new sport investment model that ensures a holistic view of sport that yields a measurable and objective return on investment and which improves transparency and accountability.
- A stand-alone Department of Sport, incorporating the Australian Sports Commission, Sport Integrity Australia and the National Sports Tribunal.
- A partnership between sport and government with sport contributing to policy development across multiple portfolios.
- Investment in the Australian Institute of Sport to transform it into the CSIRO of sport – a research giant supported by State and Territory sports institutes.
- A national sports events strategy to maximise the benefits of hosting major global sports events in Australia led by the new Department of Sport.
The AOC, in conjunction with Commonwealth Games Australia, is refreshing it’s 2021 Sport: Powering Australia’s Future (10+10) submission to reflect the fact Brisbane will now host the Olympic Games in 2032, while Victoria will host the Commonwealth Games in 2026.
Mr Carroll’s speech to the National Press Club can be found here.
The AOC’s pre-budget submission to the Federal Government can be found here.
