Sport & Physical Activity Market Research

Sport & Physical Activity

We have extensive experience within the sport and physical activity sector both as an agency and through a number of members of our team. Our team have worked with a range of organisations with an interest in social research focussed on sport and physical activity including:

• National Governing Bodies – on a range of projects focusing on aspects such as increasing accessibility for all, growing sports among specific audiences (e.g. women and girls, ethnic minority groups), the potential to introduce new formats or approaches to sports (e.g. walking football)
• National funding organisations and policymakers – undertaking research which feeds in to large scale national interventions
• Local authorities and local government – often on projects to understand interventions which can improve the health and wellbeing of citizens through increased physical activity such as active travel modes
• National and local charities with a focus on promoting access to sport or the benefits of increased physical activity from a health, environmental and mental wellbeing perspective
• Universities and other academic institutions to support research studies through data collection

As part of our work for the organisations outlined above we have engaged a wide range of audiences in the sport and physical activity space, for instance:

• Members of the public to understand attitudes and perceptions – to local interventions or national policies for instance
• Players/coaches/trainers/ of sports and sports clubs themselves to understand barriers and motivations to uptake for instance, or to test new concepts or ideas
• Spectators and fans – including topics such as media uptake, expectations for competition development and willingness to pay
• Schools and teachers to understand how to encourage adoption and uptake of sporting programmes as well as the longer term value of sport and physical activity
• Stakeholders such as businesses, those involved in developing infrastructure and politicians
• Visitors or those undertaking leisure trips

Our experience

Members of the MEL Research team have been commissioned to undertake a range of research projects in the sport and physical activity sector including:

• Economic impact analysis for the Liverpool 2022 World Gymnastics Championship
• Research to support understanding the drop-off in football participation among women and girls aged 16-18 and what interventions could be undertaken to support participation
• Quantitative research with fans at the ICC Champions Trophy to understand the perceptions of fans of South-Asian heritage
• Qualitative and quantitative research with stakeholders involved in walking football leagues to understand perceptions of the FA, and the future direction of the sport
• Engaging with schools and teachers across numerous projects to understand the impact of a sports leadership curriculum. The client said: “I have had the pleasure of working with Elliot on a few projects over the past few years. I have always found him to be professional, accommodating and have fantastic communication and project leadership skills. I would definitely recommend him as a research project lead and hope to work with him again. Elliot also works hard to build connections with like minded individuals and organisations.”
• Rebuilding a Greener Hackney is the UK’s biggest programme of low traffic neighbourhoods and school streets.  Each scheme had its own public engagement period in which residents could share their experiences of the measures, plus their views on whether they should be retained long-term. M·E·L Research led on the analysis of the responses provided from open and closed feedback questions, plus associated email and letter correspondence for 22 schemes over an 18 month period. 
• Slough Borough Council commissioned M·E·L Research to undertake an in-depth, community led research project that involved Slough residents in a local conversation on health and activity levels. Primarily, it focussed on what residents believed they can do to keep physically and mentally well and prevent poor health in themselves and their loved ones. We took an Appreciative Inquiry approach, supported by the COM-B behaviour change model, to investigate residents’ capabilities, opportunity and motivation. We utilised qualitative focus groups and chattabouts, our ‘streetwise’ form of group discussions, but more informal and participatory, followed by a survey to measure the extent to which the key qualitative findings existed in a representative sample of residents Borough wide.
• Buckinghamshire Council commissioned M·E·L Research to undertake a short discovery project, to provide behavioural insights using the COM-B behaviour change model to understand residents’ beliefs, behaviours and attitudes towards physical activity. The research involved both primary qualitative and quantitative research with residents, focusing primarily on the over 65s and those with long term health conditions and residents from ethnically diverse communities. The findings and recommendations are being used by the Council to inform their Obesity Strategy and Physical Activity Strategy, working closely with local partners to inform service delivery across the county.