In 2017, Hungary had the highest proportion of government spending on sport and entertainment among EU member states. Romania spent almost three times less on sports. Specifically, this means 25 euros per resident.
Relative to population, Luxembourg spends the most on sports and entertainment, and Hungary ranks third among European Union countries on this list, the European Union Statistical Office announced on Monday. According to a Eurostat report recording data for 2017, 2.5% of total government spending in Hungary was spent on sports and entertainment. Hungary is followed by Estonia with 1.4 percent, then Luxembourg with 1.2 percent.
The EU average is 0.7 percent, achieved by Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Portugal and Slovenia. In Romania, this rate is 0.9 percent. Of the public expenditures in Ireland, Malta, Slovakia and the United Kingdom, the amount allocated to sport and leisure was 0.4 per cent. In addition to Germany, Austria and Italy, Lithuania and Bulgaria do not reach the EU average. At the bottom of the line is Croatia with 0.2 percent.
The report shows that the 28 EU member states spent €51.3 billion on sport and entertainment in 2017, an amount unchanged since 2004. According to Eurostat data, a population projection, Luxembourg spent the most on sport and entertainment in the period studied, €492. For every resident. Luxembourg comes in second place after Sweden with 256 euros, then Finland with 206 euros, the Netherlands with 199 euros, Denmark with 192 euros, then France with 183 euros. Hungary comes next, significantly exceeding the EU average of €100, with government spending on sport and leisure per capita reaching around €150 in 2017.
Croatia spent the least, 13 euros per inhabitant, on sports and entertainment. The European Union Statistical Office announced that a slightly larger amount was spent in Bulgaria, where this spending amounted to 16 euros, in Slovakia 23 euros, in Romania 25 euros, in Lithuania 31 euros, and in Malta 32 euros.
