1 Running, Padel, HYROX: Why Sports Events Are Booming in Indonesia Has your timeline lately been full of friends’ stories about joining a fun run, a padel tournament, or even HYROX? Turns out this isn’t just a feeling. Many Want In, But Haven’t Made the Leap Yet Among all respondents, 39.2% say they’ve never joined a sports event before, but really want to. This is the largest group by far bigger than those who’ve joined once (21.2%), two to three times (16.1%), or more than three times (10.5%). Only 13.0% have never joined and genuinely aren’t interested. That means the market potential is still huge. It’s not that people lack interest, it’s that they haven’t yet found the push or the opportunity to get started. What Finally Gets People to Join For those who’ve already taken part in a sports event, the main reason isn’t just about health. 61.8% say their top reason for joining is the fun of doing it with friends or a community, followed by staying healthy at 55.8%. Another 41.8% joined because they wanted to challenge themselves. As for what makes an event appealing in the first place, a unique concept comes out on top at 51.6%, closely followed by prizes at 50.6%. Location matters too, for 45.4% of people, and 41.7% say they’re more motivated when a friend is joining as well. The Effect Doesn’t Stop After Race Day Here’s the interesting part: the impact doesn’t end once the event is over. 38.1% of people say they’ve become more consistent with exercise after joining an event more than those who just take a break before getting back into it (29.2%). The rest either only join specific events (19.3%) or see no change at all (5.3%). On whether Indonesia’s sports event trend is genuine or just hype, 43.3% believe it’s truly about helping people live healthier, not just a passing trend. Meanwhile, only 21.2% think it’s purely FOMO. The remaining 23.2% see it as a mix of both. The Takeaway Bottom line: sports events in Indonesia aren’t booming just because of social media trends. People join for the fun of doing it together and end up carrying a healthier habit forward as a result. If you’re part of that 39.2% who wants to join but hasn’t found the time, maybe it’s time to find your first event.
