Five years on from the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, sport bears deep marks—some of progress, many of loss. While the world never truly declared an end to the pandemic, the return of sport quietly signaled a broader cultural reawakening. The first stirrings came in May 2020, following a global sporting blackout. Footballers in England resumed training, Bundesliga matches returned behind closed doors, and strange televised events like backyard pole vault competitions emerged. These moments offered a glimpse of sport’s resilience but also sowed the seeds of long-term changes that continue to shape it today.
On one end of the scale, the pandemic created an ideal environment for power consolidation. Global bodies like Fifa and the BCCI capitalized on the vacuum left by suspended competition and financial instability. With much of the world in crisis, opportunities arose for central authorities to assert themselves more aggressively. Fifa expanded its influence, pushing forward initiatives such as the enlarged Club World Cup and clearing the way for a Saudi-hosted World Cup. The centralization of power became a defining feature, as financial necessity weakened the resistance of smaller entities and clubs.
Other shifts were structural. The increased use of five substitutes in football, initially a temporary adaptation, became permanent—an advantage that favors wealthier clubs with deeper squads. Television broadcasters, once secondary to the in-stadium fan experience, seized the moment. With matches played in empty arenas, TV executives dictated scheduling, presentation, and even aspects of match control. Kick-off times shifted to suit remote audiences, while the experience for fans in stadiums was pushed to the margins. Even after fans returned, these changes largely stayed in place, with ticket prices rising and physical accessibility further reduced.
In some corners, however, the pandemic brought unexpected progress. Women’s sports, particularly in cricket, gained visibility as logistical necessity led to more double-header events. These turned out to be successful and have remained a feature of the calendar. Darts saw a resurgence as a low-cost, comforting form of competition during lockdown. Meanwhile, sports like boxing and golf found new homes and massive financial backing in Saudi Arabia, ushering in a new geopolitical era of sport-as-soft-power.
Yet, for every area of expansion, there were painful contractions elsewhere. Amateur sport suffered immensely. Many local clubs and programs simply disappeared due to lost funding and logistical collapse. While some recreational sports saw a brief boom during lockdowns, the long-term impact has been a drop in participation, especially among children. The result is a so-called “lost generation” who missed formative years of sporting engagement. This decline has been most severe along lines of gender and class, correlating with rising childhood obesity and declining overall youth fitness.
The pandemic’s imprint on sport is a story of polarization: of growing distance between elite spectacle and grassroots play, of power amassed and access reduced. Though stadiums are full again and tournaments back in swing, many decisions made during those uncertain months remain embedded in the system. As sport moves further into an era dominated by remote consumption and central authority, the challenge remains not only to preserve access but to reaffirm the role of the participant and the fan not just as spectators, but as central players in the sporting experience.
