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In an annual survey by Sport England, the governing body for sports in England, about the number of people who play tennis, it was found that between October 2015 and September 2016, approximately 721,100 people played tennis on a monthly basis, considering any intensity and duration. The survey was conducted via telephone interviews and has been undertaken annually from 2007 to 2016.

Current Trends

This statistic suggests that the number of tennis players has shown a consistent decline, from 940 thousand people between 2007 and 2008, to just over 721 thousand people between 2015 and 2016. A decrease of about 27 percent over seven years. Although this decline in participation can be observed over all age groups, when compared to the share of children participating in tennis in England, it shows that the decline in tennis players is slightly more evident among adults.

Investment

To combat this decline, in 2017 the British Lawn Tennis association pledged to invest 125 million British pounds in tennis facilities, which alongside commensurate commitments from local governments, businesses, and communities, will increase the number of tennis courts across the UK and hope to address some of the key barriers to tennis participation such as poor weather, dark evenings and outdated booking systems.

Further information

Further information on tennis in the United Kingdom can be found in the Dossier: Tennis in the United Kingdom.