Tokyo Olympics 2020: An opportunity for the world to come together?
We asked 28 countries about their views on the Tokyo Olympics 2021. Here, you can read that 62% sees the event as an important opportunity for the world to come together after the Covid-19 pandemic - and gain many other insights.
DANISH VERSION →
Before the Tokyo Summer Olympics 2020 (which took place in July 2021), we asked people in 28 countries about their views on the event: Should it go ahead? How interested are they personally? What is the impact of the Games on wider society?
Key findings:
- There is uncertainty about whether the Olympics should go ahead as people are divided due to the continued impact of Covid-19. On average, 43% agree it should go ahead while 57% disagree. Yet, support is significantly lower in the host nation Japan where 22% agrees and 78% disagrees.
- 62% on average say the Olympics 2020 marks an important opportunity for the world to come together. A similar proportion say that the Olympics bring their country together. So overall, it would seem that the Olympics has an uniting power.
- Levels of interest in the Olympics vary across the world. India, South Africa and China are the countries most interested in the Toyko Olympics, while Belgium, South Korea and Japan are least interested.
- Football/soccer is the most popular Olympic event. In terms of public interest, Athletics is second, followed by Aquatics and Gymnastics.
- Around the world, an average of 8 in 10 say the Olympics inspire younger generations to participate in sport.
Support for Tokyo 2020
Overall, support for the Olympics taking place in summer 2021 is muted, due in part to concerns over Covid-19. On average 43% say the event should go ahead, compared to 57% who say it shouldn’t. The countries with the greatest support for the event taking place as scheduled are Turkey (71%), Saudi Arabia (66%), Russia (61%) and Poland (60%). The host nation, Japan, is the most doubtful nation with 22% agreeing compared to 78% disagreeing with the scheduled continuation.
The uniting power of the Olympics
62% worldwide agree that the Olympics will be an important opportunity for the world to come together following the pandemic. Turkey and Saudi Arabia once again show the highest levels of agreement with this statement (81% in both countries). South Korea, Japan and Germany are the only countries where fewer than 50% say the Olympics presents an opportunity to come together.
Levels of interest - overall
There is a mixed picture when it comes to interest in the Olympics as majorities in 13 of the 28 countries say they are very/somewhat interested, but majorities in 15 countries report being not very/not at all interested.
Engagement appears to be higher in India, South Africa and China, but lower in Belgium, South Korea and Japan.
Levels of interest - events
Looking across the various Olympics events, we find that most people are interested in the following:
- football/soccer (30%)
- athletics/track & field (27%)
- aquatics (22%) (swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo)
- gymnastics (21%)
Completing the top 10 are:
- volleyball
- tennis
- basketball
- cycling
- boxing
- badminton.
For each of the top four sports, the five most interested countries (measured by the % that place it in their top 3 from a list of 21 sports) are:
Impact of the Olympics on society
We also asked people what they think of the Olympics in a wider sense. Some highlights include:
- A majority worldwide (80%) say that the Olympics inspire younger generations to participate in sport.
- 67% approve of government funding being used to support the performance of their country’s Olympic athletes.
- 71% agree that Olympic athletes should be given priority to Covid-19 vaccinations. This agreement is highest in China (92%), Saudi Arabia (89%) and India (88%), but less in Germany (50%), Great Britain (52%), and Belgium (54%).
- There is a split opinion on whether there is too much nationalism on display at the Olympics.: 55% agree and 45% disagree.
