PIONEERING CHANGESTRATEGIC PLAN | 2024-2027

World Athletics Pioneering Change2www.worldathletics.org

CO NT E N TS

Executive Summary .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 4Review of Strategy for Growth (2020-2023)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 6Our Vision .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 12
Our Mission .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 13
Our Stakeholders .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 14
Challenges and Opportunities going forward  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 16
Our 2024-2027 Goal .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 18
Delivering Innovation .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 19
Strategic Priorities and Primary Activities (2024-2027) .  .  .  . 22
Brilliant Basics  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 26
World Plan .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 27
Strategic 4-Year Goals at a Glance  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 28
Measuring Success  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 29
Our Values  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 31
Financial Projections  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 32
Conclusion  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 33
World Athletics 2024 Key Priority Areas  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 34

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

EXECU TIV E S UMMARYWorld Athletics is halfway through the 8-year arch from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games to LA28. The last four years
have seen many of the building blocks to grow the sport of athletics put in place through the Strategy for Growthplan and the World Plan for Athletics.
However, we have been less bold in the evolution of the core sport product through innovation so that it is future
proofed to remain relevant for the next 150 years. With this new strategy, the next four years must be a game changer
for the sport of athletics.
We are the number 1 Olympic Sport by audience and reach and our World Championships also see many millions ofpeople around the world watching our athletes. We will build on these big moments by ensuring we have a major
athletics global event taking place EVERY year. An event that ends the classic outdoor season with flair, entertainment
and purpose that attracts large global audiences.
To keep and grow our audiences in stadiums, on television and through streaming on digital channels we will improve
the pace and entertainment value of our major global and Area Championships so time after time we are deliveringhigh-quality events in which our global star athletes want to compete in and our fans choose to attend and watch.
We will also continue to review and, where necessary, evolve our rules to make sure they make our sport simpler, notmore complicated.
As the foundation to all sport, World Athletics aims to ensure that the joy and thrill of running, jumping and throwing, in
its simplest form, continues to grow strongly in all corners of the globe so we inspire the next generation of athletes,
coaches, officials or administrators. These basic skills, developed early, will benefit all sport and will lead to healthier,fitter individuals and communities.
We will attract more people into all levels of athletics because they see it as a viable career choice or vocation. They willlearn and train with us and then stay within the sport. We know we have some of the best technical and coaching
training modules of any sport. And as the foundation of all sport, it is only understandable that many other sports areinterested in those that have come through our training systems. We are happy to share but only after we haveexhausted clear pathways to keep the best in our sport.
But it all starts with our events and our competitions. More events that attract more fans and broadcasters mean moremoney for our athletes, for our Federations and more generally for our sport. This is the focus of our Pioneering Change
four-year strategy (2024-2027).

It is all about innovation to grow our global reachand the sport’s value in a quantifiable way.

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Executive Summary

www.worldathletics.org

We will focus specifically on:

paced and more exciting events for millions of people to watch, in the stadium and at/ Fasterhome.
innovation across the board, not just the field of play, but ways to bring athletes and fans
/ Morecloser in and out of competition.
ways in which our athletes can be the stars they deserve to be through existing/ Morecompetition and new events and optimal and targeted use of social media platforms.
inclusive and accessible entry points into our sport as a competitor, a coach, a referee, a/ Morevolunteer or an administrator.

World Athletics has ambitious plans, a motivatednetwork of over 200 Member Federations andstrong foundations delivered over the last eight
years to take the sport to an exciting new level.

5World Athletics Pioneering Change

RE V IE W O F ST RAT EGY FO R G ROW T H (2 0 2 0 -2 0 23)
Much has been achieved in the last 4 years, with the ‘Strategy for Growth’ plan. It was created on the back of four
years of high profile, widespread and much needed reform across the sport, with the aim of using the solid and securereform foundations to enable the sport of athletics to flourish and grow. This it did despite the Covid 19 Global
Pandemic which severely impacted our events in 2020 and 2021. The highlights of what was achieved over the last
four years are included below.

Innovation Foundations
With fewer events taking place around the world in the first two years of this strategy, this hiatus was not wasted. Our
HQ, Area and Federation teams spent that time scoping programmes, strategies and initiatives and developing
educational tools, platforms and activities to engage and entertain core stakeholders in the sport.
The development of the World Athletics’ Digital Media Hub gave, and continues to give, hundreds of broadcasters,
partners and Federations around the world easy access to high-quality content in multiple formats. Our remote mixedzone concept created to cover events during the Covid 19 years, continues today allowing media and Federations
unable to travel to all our events the opportunity to request interviews, footage and photography that can be used inmany more countries around the world.
The creation of the World Athletics’ 10-year Sustainability Strategy, also launched during the global pandemic, wasaccompanied by online education modules explaining the six core pillars of the strategy so our event and meeting
partners and Federations were able to quickly understand the strategy and work on their own plans to create moresustainable events.
From more or less a standing start, a new, more holistic, and fully interactive Kids’ Athletics programme was launchedwith a modular approach to suit different ages and different environments. This was followed by a detailed training
course to deliver Kids’ Athletics trainers around the world who, through our Member Federations, can continue to train
more people to teach Kids’ Athletics. Almost half our Member Federations are running Kids’ Athletics programmes and
157 Federations have completed the Train the Trainers Course.
In 2023 we launched a new global event, the World Athletics Road Running Championships which brought together in
one Championships for the first time, global titles in the road mile, 5km and half marathon. Mass races ran alongsidethese events creating a festival of running in the Latvian city of Riga. From 2025 the World Athletics Road RunningChampionships will become an annual event.
We also relentlessly focused on evolving our TV graphics, social media content, fan engagement initiatives all in aneffort to drive engagement. The creation of exciting and engaging content (Athletics@Home), our ever creative andresourceful athletes and a global first back garden competition (Ultimate Garden Clash) kept athletics front and centre
during a tough time for the world.

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Review of Strategy for Growth (2020-2023)

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Scaling Up

The last four years also saw a step change
in the scale of events, skills development,
education and athlete prize money.
This investment was largely due, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, to our increased revenues fromcirca US$50 million per annum to US$55 million per annum.
Athletes will always be our first priority. The launch of the Continental Tour Gold events andincreased investment across all 1-day meetings, although curtailed in the early days of the global
pandemic, proved essential as the world slowly moved out of the pandemic at different speeds.
Athletes had more opportunities to compete in their own countries and regions helping them train
and qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games (delayed to 2021). Athletes were also first in line
to benefit from the fines imposed on the Russian Athletics’ Federation as part of its reinstatement
criteria. Funds from these fines were used to increase our World Championships prize money by
US$1 million for the World Athletics Championships Oregon 22 and is now part of the hosting
agreement for all future World Championship events. Over the four-year period, more than US$24
million has been allocated by World Athletics to athletes across its World Championship events.
Our World Indoor Tour and Continental Tour meetings, sanctioned by World Athletics increased
from just over 20 events to almost 300 events by the end of 2023. Road Race Label events held in
53 countries in 2023 attracted around 4m participants.

WORLD INDOORTOUR ANDCONTINENTAL
TOUR MEETINGS

Investment in World Athletics eLearning platform and the development of courses also delivered
strong results. In 2020 only two online courses were available to just under 1,000 registered users
on the eLearning platform. By the end of 2023, 14 courses were available, all in more than one
language and a third of them in seven languages. Registered users rose to 14,000, well over thetarget goal for the period and significant growth has been seen in the number of applicantsregistering for referee and coaching courses. Almost all (97%) of Member Federations areregistered on the platform and using the eLearning tools. As we continue to expand the tools,
courses and languages we expect to see strong growth in the number of individuals using theplatform in each country.
During this period the World Plan was developed with input from 85% of our Member Federations
and over 25,000 individuals from 175 countries. We launched virtual Member Federation Sessions
to share information, consult on decisions, present strategy and directly connect the work at World
Athletics’ HQ with our Federations. These monthly sessions proved enormously popular andcontinue today.

WORLD ATHLETICS
eLEARNING
PLATFORMREGISTERED USERS

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

8Oversight and Reputation

A focus of the last four years has beenon oversight and reputation.
Through a Council-sanctioned working group, World Athletics created a comprehensive safeguarding policy anddeveloped practical implementation frameworks, documents, tools, templates and information sessions and workshops
to assist Member Federations to meet the mandated targets of having their own safeguarding policy and proceduresin place by the end of 2023 and Areas by 2024.
Tools were also developed to assist Member Federations in grant applications and annual reporting, creating a more
automated process which was simpler to use and provided more analysis and information for Federations and HQ. A
social media tracker programme was created which enables all Areas and Federations to monitor their social media
impact which is helping them to make data driven decisions on their communication initiatives. Well attended
Governance, Communication and sharing research and insights sessions and workshops were held at all Area
Congresses and Member Federation information session programmes were established at our two senior World
Athletics Championships in Oregon and Budapest. This is part of a joint initiative to build core skills and capacity in our
Area Associations and Member Federations.
In 2023 we also established our innovations team and conducted for the first time deep fan and product research at
the World Championships in Budapest. This was just the start but the findings from this event and future events will
help us make good and brave decisions based on data.
At the end of 2022 we also received tracking data, from Nielsen which gave us a snapshot of how athletics is
positioned around the world and how our fans engage with us. Given the state of athletics as a brand and governing
body in 2015 we were particularly delighted with the strong reputation results that both the sport and a governing
body received. And because good news should always be shared more than once, the results showed:/ Athletics is ranked fourth in terms of sports interest globally.
/ Athletics has the best reputation of all global sports (89% agreed).
/ World Athletics ranks third in terms of reputation among InternationalSports Federations with 79% believing we govern our sport well.

/ The overall perception of World Athletics has improved to a greater extent
over the past two years than any other International Sports Federation.

And last but by no means least 2020 saw World Athletics deliver its first public Annual Report and Accounts (on the2019 financial year). This and many more initiatives helped to secure and grow the governance and reputation of
athletics around the world in a number of external independent assessments.

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Review of Strategy for Growth (2020-2023)

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

1 5 O F 16 ST RAT EGI C G OA LS D E L I VE R E D (2 0 2 2 -23)
M O R E FA N S

M O R E PA R T I CI PAT I ON

Delivery Goal: We will attract more fans to attend andwatch our athletes compete at national, regional andglobal competitions and develop platforms and initiatives
that are flexible and reflect the world we live in today toengage with and inspire our fans.

Delivery Goal: We will invest in our athletes and thedevelopment of our competitions by delivering more events
where athletes can earn income and create more
opportunities for people to participate in athletics across alllevels, in as many countries as we can and in all age groups.

× Half a million known fans registered by end✓World Indoor Tour and Continental Tour✓Social media followers increased from 2m to✓Around 20,000 athletes competed inof 2023, half the target of 1 million that was
set at the beginning of the strategic plan. A
new approach and resources were defined in
2021 which resulted in a step change that weare confident will continue through the next
four-year strategic plan.

12m following a thorough review and revampof our platforms and our fans and a laser-like
focus on significantly improving the content
we create and where we invested additional
resources and on which platforms. Annual
media reach topped 25bn and athletics again
became the No.1 Olympic Sport at the Tokyo
2020 Olympic Games.

✓Audited digital consumption of our World

Outdoor Championships rose from ~4mviewer hours in 2019 to over 14m in 2023(+208% growth).

✓Full stadia was achieved at the Budapest 23

World Athletics Championships – generally
referred to as the best World Championships
event ever staged.

↗ 208%

AUDITED DIGITAL CONSUMPTION OF OURWORLD OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS IN VIEWER HOURS UP 208%10

1-day meetings, created and sanctioned byWorld Athletics, increased from just over 20
to almost 300, including the launch of CTG
in 5 of the 6 Areas. Plus 257 Road Race
Label events in 53 countries attracting 4M
participants in 2023.

250 top-flight Championships and 1 Day
meetings (excl Road) in 2023.

✓Almost half our Member Federations running
Kids’ Athletics programmes in their country
reaching half a million children in 2023 with
157 Federations having completed the train
the trainer programme.

MOR E P EO P L E

M O R E PA R T N E R S H I PS

Delivery Goal: We will celebrate, support and develop the
people who deliver our sport throughout the world, atevery level, providing clear access and pathways for all.

Delivery Goal: We will create more partnerships withcommercial and non-commercial organisations thatgenerate financial and activation value and opportunities
for our sport, our athletes, our Member Federations andglobal communities.

✓Investment in eLearning platform and courses
has seen registered users rise from under
1,000 to 14,000. And from 2 online courses
in 2020 to 14 courses with a third of them in
7 languages. 97% of Federations registered.

✓Council gender targets met four years early ina groundbreaking election in 2023 that saw
World Athletics become the first InternationalSporting Federation to have equal female andmale representation on its decision-making
Council.

✓Commercial partnerships (incl TBS and

EBU) increased from 5 to 10, including the
introduction of new supplier level.

✓Increased partner activation took place atboth the Oregon22 and Budapest23 World
Athletics Championships.

✓Member Federation skills to drive growth wasdelivered through the creation of the World
Plan, Member Federation Info Sessions,
webinars, workshops and presentations.

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Review of Strategy for Growth (2020-2023)

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

OUR V ISI O N

TO USE THE
POWER ANDACCESSIBLITY
OF ATHLETICSAND OUR
ATHLETESTO CREATE A
HEALTHIER AND
FITTER WORLD
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Our Mission

www.worldathletics.org

OUR M IS S I O N

GROWGrow the sport of athletics and make it relevant inpeople’s lives and in the lives of their communities.

INSPIRE

Create globally appealing and accessible competitions, events, andactivities so our talented athletes can entertain and inspire the world.

LEAD
Be the best example of a well-governed sports federation taking brave leadershipdecisions and valuing partnerships that deliver athletics around the world.

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

OUR STA K EH O L D ER S
In creating this strategic plan we have identified seven priority stakeholder groups, all of whom are fundamental todelivering this ambitious Pioneering Change strategy. With the focus on innovation over the next four years, the key
influencers in our sport – those most invested in athletics every single day - become even more important toachieving the ambitious goals we have set.

Athletes
Who are our number one asset and, as such, need to be supported, promoted, protected by clear rules and behaviour,
inspired to compete, rewarded and supported with the platforms and tools to engage directly with fans and partners.
Creating more competition and earning opportunities for our athletes remains a priority in our desire to make a career inathletics an attractive professional choice.

Member Federations
There may be significant diversity across our 214 Member Federations but everyone one of them has the ability todeliver growth in our sport, either at elite level or community level, so we need to make them the best they can be atwhichever focus they are best suited to. The World Plan 2022-2030 lays out clear goals and objectives for Member
Federations and Area Associations to stay ambitious and support each other.

Key Influencers
Sitting within our sport are individuals, companies, event organisations and government authorities (local, regional andnational) who wield an enormous influence over key elements of the sport. These include athletes, coaches, athletes’
representatives, shoe manufacturers, event organisers and hosting bodies as well as national and local authorities whodevelop and promote grassroots participation in athletics. We need to ensure these groups are aware of their value andinfluence and understand the collective power and benefits that working together will deliver on their own strategic
ambitions as we grow the sport.

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Our Stakeholders

www.worldathletics.org

Partners
Without whom we would not be able to realise our vision so we must find ways to help them align with our vision,
support our strategy and activate extensively, whether they provide funds, supply us with services, broadcast our
sport, organise events at any level or partner with us in campaigns.

Media
Who amplify our events, our athletes, our campaigns and the way we run our sport. Critical friends at worst and avid
champions of the sport at best, they need to have access to all of us, in good times and bad, to help tell our stories aswell as we can.

Fans
Who participate in our sport, who watch our sport, who follow our athletes and who motivate their families, their friends,
their communities and their governments to support healthy and fitter lifestyles. We need to mobilise this group, inspirethem to participate, excite them to watch and bring them together on platforms and in forums where they feel they
belong and choose to connect to our sport.

Our People
Whether in Area Associations, Member Federations, our HQ or the millions of people who enable our sport to takeplace day in, day out. We need to develop them, encourage and support them and celebrate them. We need to inspire
more people into our sport through easy access to education and skills and clear pathways, processes and equality
practices.

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

CH ALLE NGES A N D O P PO R T U N I T I E S G O I N G
FO RWARD
Our sport continues to evolve so we must continue to be brave, innovative and transformative in everything we do.
This strategy acknowledges six external forces that will continue to impact and change sport during the course ofthis strategy.
1.	 Shifting generational attitudes to what, how and where content is consumed. Interest in sports andengagement patterns are changing as a result of global, diverse audiences and new generational trends.
Almost three quarters of 13-37 years olds say that they do not need to watch sports live, preferring
to watch highlights and clips and over half of the 12-27 year olds (Gen Z) do not like traditional sport
or formats. TV consumption continues to decline globally and whilst live sports remains one of the few‘appointment to view’ pieces of content, audiences are fragmenting and rights owners have to evolve their
media and marketing strategies to offer their content via a range of platforms and in a variety of formats.
They also need to ensure access to their sport is easy, cost effective and consistent enough to excite, build
and retain audiences.
2.	 Technology is enabling disruption of sport consumption and participation. The effective use of data indecision making is more important than ever, with 90% of the world’s big data having been produced in
the last 2 years. This means we have to be exact in the language and the narrative we adopt to attractcommercial partners. New experiences, such as virtual environments and AI present opportunities for rights
owners to engage audiences. Smart technology and wearables are changing how athletes can monitor andmanage their physical and mental health.
3.	 Attitudes to societal issues are forcing more action on equality from clubs, athletes, broadcasters, partners
and governing bodies. Athletes in particular will become more influential on societal issues as a more relatable
face of their sport and as platforms enable an ever more democratised share of voice. Women’s sport
is more important than ever, with interest more evenly split between men’s and women’s sport, particularly
amongst Gen Z and Gen Alpha.
4.	 Physical and mental health is an increasing priority for all, with the global gym industry worth over $97bn
and growing at 9% year on year, and a better understanding of the complexity of mental health, with 1
in 4 people experiencing an issue with mental health at some point in their lives. At every level of sports,
technology is enabling a better understanding of physical and mental health for all, whilst athlete welfare isincreasingly under the spotlight, especially around governance and off-field support.
5.	 Climate change and sustainability are setting expectations of how events are delivered, with consumers
expecting more action around how the events they attend and watch impact climate change and ensuring
they are designed with sustainability in mind. Linked to physical health, this extends to athlete welfare, withthe average athlete now exposed to 20% more ‘extremely hot’ days than in 1990. World Athletics’ athlete
surveys show that 77% of our athletes are either extremely concerned or very concerned about Climate
Change and 85% believe that the sport has been impacted.
6.	 The evolving sports market is continuing to create more opportunity for growth. Sports organisations
have started to reshape and expand their revenue models, driven by the decline in traditional consumption
channels such as broadcast and the emerging opportunities of new assets, such as big data. The everincreasing globalisation of sport, means that outside investment, such as private equity and sovereign wealthfunds, is becoming more prevalent in driving growth.

16Challenges and Opportunities going forward

www.worldathletics.org

The evolution of attitudes, consumption behaviour and enabling technology mean rightsholders are subject tounprecedented complexity and external challenge when forging their strategic plans and, importantly, bringing theirstakeholders with them on this journey.

World Athletics’ ability to foresee and react tochange, and embrace these challenges at speed
in an ever faster-moving world, is how we will
stand out from other Federations and sports.
This means rethinking how we engage with and enlist the key influencers in our sport to join together, and being
prudent and targeted in our investments, to enable maximum impact and growth. The destination can be transformativeand World Athletics is determined to be different and be a standout leader within our sport. We are willing to be braveand innovative in our efforts to capture an even larger proportion of the overall sports market. However, we need toaccept that as a result, the change we want to see will, at times, be uncomfortable even with robust data andsupportive partners.

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

OUR 202 4- 2 0 27 GOA L
This 4-year strategy will build on the solid footings of the last strategy, maintaining excellence in event delivery andthe governance of the sport, whilst pioneering a data-driven programme of change, to future-proof the sport ofathletics. This programme of change will centre around the incremental innovation to continuously evolve our sport
for all today, whilst also introducing architectural innovation to create new events and evolve our existing athletics
formats for tomorrow.

Pioneering change and setting the standard
to future-proof the sport of athletics.
We will do this by:• Investing and innovating in our events and primary activities to create the ultimate platform for athletics.
• Setting the standard in our events, the sports governance and partnerships and commercial programmes to protect
and grow the value of athletics.
• Driving the accessibility of the sport of athletics for all to ensure its enduring relevance.
• Ensuring we have the tools and pathways to encourage, support and grow the people who choose to work inathletics.
• Continuing to invest in people and programmes that deliver the best return for growth.
• Streamline or reduce activities, without compromising quality, so we have the time and resources to innovate andmake improvements.
We know we will have been successful in this mission if we look back from 2027 to a sport that has quantifiably grownin global reach and in value, with more participation, more people, more fans and more partnerships across all forms of
the sport, across the world.
The drive for accessibility and, more importantly, inclusivity, particularly at mass participation level, will be felt by more
people than ever participating in and supporting the delivery of athletics at all levels. The innovation of our events will
mean that athletics will continue to cut through, creating more fans and maximising participation.
Pioneering change and continuing to set the standard will enable us to grow the global reach and value of athletics andcreate more partnerships, which benefit the entire athletics ecosystem and future-proof the world of athletics.

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DE LIV E RI N G I N N OVAT I O N
Much of the last four years has been focused on growing the sport of athletics following the reform foundations thatwere set in the preceding four years. Many people and commentators across our sport have wanted us to move more
quickly and innovate in a number of areas. We know this is important and it has always been part of our thinking.
However, innovation for the sake of innovation, without the proper analysis, tools, discussions, resources andwidespread motivation and capability is a costly and often futile exercise.
Innovation is our most important task ahead. Whilst seeds were sown during the Covid 19 Pandemic, where people had
more time and focus to devote to solutions that kept athletics front and centre during those years. Many of thesesolutions remain in place today and are helping to build a more cohesive sport that supports our stakeholders in a worldthat continues to change quickly and unpredictably. But there is much more that needs to be done and at pace.
To achieve the innovation we want to achieve, we need to surround ourselves with people who believe in our goals andare willing to join the journey with us, to support us proactively and reactively. As all athletes know only too well, theonly sustainable competitive advantage in a competitive and cluttered landscape is to learn faster than yourcompetition and to act on what you have learned in good and bad times.
With the data, analysis, tools and resources in place innovation will be front and centre over the next four years; notindiscriminately but with purpose-driven plans and processes.
Our focus on innovation sits in five core areas which, when brought together, will make the pioneering changes we want
to see in athletics in a cohesive, structured and sustainable way to future proof the sport for decades to come. The fivecore areas will all contribute to the growth and popularity of athletics in a rapidly changing global sports landscape.

The success of the innovation agenda is heavily reliant
on bringing our key stakeholders on the journey with us.
This is not a solo endeavour, but one that is supported
and will be delivered by the sport as a whole.
COMPETITION

FANS

BRAND

DELIVERYCOMMERCIAL

Incremental innovation of existing event formats
New event origination and delivery
Reaching new audiences and targeting those already participating in athletics
Growing the quantity and quality of direct fan relationships
Realise the equity in the brand and use as an asset
Licence and extend master brand to build partnerships outside events
Alternative delivery models of major events
Delivery of events via 3rd parties
Expanded and diversified sponsorship programme
Activation departments to drive partner value

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Delivering Innovationwww.worldathletics.org

World Athletics Pioneering Change

20Delivering Innovationwww.worldathletics.org

21World Athletics Pioneering Change

ST RATEGI C P R I O R I T I E S A N D P R I M A RY ACT I VI T I ES
(202 4-20 27)
The strategic priorities of this plan build on the four pillars of the last strategy – More Participation, More People,
More Fans, More Partnerships. A fifth pillar – Event Innovation – has been added as a foundation pillar to ensure theorganisation, and the sport more widely, remains focused on this area. A cross-functional strategy team has been put
in place with clear goals, objectives and outcomes to ensure this remains a focus for World Athletics.

Summary of strategic goals
and innovate our events and improve the quality of formats, disciplines and rules through the* Differentiate
creation of a robust, data driven focus on the athletics product and innovation which we test thoroughly before
implementing.
World Class Championship events; end the season with a new or existing global championship event and* Deliversupport one-day meetings, which we both lead or influence, so we can consistently showcase the best athletes andcreate must watch competition for fans.
new events and increase the quality of existing regional and global events to create clearer reasons for* Create
athletes to compete and fans to engage.
increase prize money for athletes through our annual existing and new Championship events and deliver* Furtherpartnership opportunities to help elite athletes build professional career pathways and increase revenue.	
more opportunities and reasons for people of all ages to participate in athletics (Kids’ Athletics, Masters,* Create
Para Athletics, City, Trail and Mountain running etc).
retain, reward and educate people in our sport and create more ways for them to be part of global athletics* Recruit,
regardless of region, age or level.
our appreciation and reward the vital contribution of our volunteers by creating a certification* Acknowledge
programme based on skills.

* Build a global fanbase of millions of known fans with whom we can communicate on a regular basis.
and equip Member Federations and Areas to impactfully contribute to the growth of athletics (KPIs set* Empower
through World Plan).

* Increase Business-to-Consumer sponsorship revenue and grow non-event partnership programme opportunities.
We will now go into each goal in more detail.

22

EV ENT I N NOVATI ON
We recognise the ongoing evolution of all of our events,from grassroots events to elite competitions, is a key
pillar of this strategy. By listening to our athletes, fans,partners and stakeholders around the world and working
in cooperation with others keen to innovate in athletics,
we will design and deliver new events and innovate ourexisting events in our global calendar. Some of this is
obvious but requires resources and focus. Other aspects
of innovation are more complex and require real-timechanges which will take longer.

Strategic Goal
• Differentiate events and improve the quality offormats, disciplines and rules through the creation of arobust, data driven focus on the athletics product andinnovation.

Outputs• Review and consolidate all research conducted acrossthe organisation and across the sport in one place
to better analyse and utilise research to drive
decision making.
• Conduct bespoke audience research at WAS events,
1-day meetings, out of stadium events and the
Olympic Games to better understand the changing
behaviours of our fans.
• Continue to invest in Impact Assessment Studies
across our signature events and share with Member
Federations, Local Organising Committees andbidding cities.
• Pilot new formats and discipline innovation in selected
existing events.
• Integrate new technology where appropriate toenhance our events and to drive engagement withnew audiences.

23

Strategic Priorities and Primary Activities (2024-2027)

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

MO RE PARTICIPATION

M OR E P EOP L E

We will maximise participation at every level of the sport
by growing the breadth and depth of opportunity for all,whilst continuing to invest in the development of allathletes.

We acknowledge the vital importance of the people that deliver
athletics at all levels. We will therefore continue to invest in
more resources to enable easy access to tailored education,
alongside practical experience and shared communities. Our
Member Federations and Areas will be key resources to help

Strategic Goals• Deliver World Class Championship events and one
day meetings, which we both lead and influence, thatshowcase the best athletes and create must watch
competition for fans.
• Create new events and increase the quality of existingregional and global events to create clearer reasons forathletes to compete and fans to engage.
• Create more opportunities and reasons for people of
all ages to participate in athletics.

deliver relevant education tailored to local regions.

Strategic Goals• Recruit, retain, reward and educate people in our sportand create more ways for them to be part of global
athletics regardless of region, age or level.
• Acknowledge our appreciation and reward thevital contribution of our volunteers by creating acertification programme based on skills.

Outputs

Outputs• Recalibrate our global World Athletics Series (WAS)
events with research led metrics and end each season
with a global championship event.

• Conduct a skills gap analysis by region of technicalofficials, referees and coaches by using the information
provided in our Member Federation annual reports andcross referencing this to the Global, Area and National
level competitions in each Area. Armed with this data,
Federations and Areas will be able to focus on gaps,
including representation inequalities, rather thanincrease resources and skills in places where they are
already strong.

• Launch a new global championship event to take placein 2026 that is made for television and will appeal tomillions of people around the world.
• Set quality standard metrics for 1-day events and Area
Championships so improvements can be consistently
applied.
• Grow Kids’ Athletics around the world in a sustainable
format meeting the targets set in the World Plan.
• Continue to include mass events within and around our
global World Athletics Championships and encourage
participation from all levels and abilities.
• Evolve the gamification & digitization of the sport
experience.
• Develop partnerships with a broad range of city,
mountain, trail and other event formats.
• Create meaningful partnerships with Masters & Para
Athletics bodies.

• Create more courses, in more languages to meet thegrowing and diverse needs of our global community.
• Develop and market the career opportunities that
athletics has to offer.
• Create engaging networks and platforms for ourpeople to share and exchange information andknowledge.
• Review coach and referee qualification certification
approach to create faster pathways for discipline
expertise and certification.
• Establish a Global Coaching Centre of Coaching
Excellence in Budapest, part of the Budapest 23
legacy.
• Develop a volunteer skills programme with recognised
certificates in areas related to athletic events.

24

MORE FANSM OR E PA RTNE R S HI PS

More global fans will choose athletics because theyknow how to follow the sport, will have access to moreexclusive content and can engage with athletics andathletes in a way that suits them all year round.

We will evolve our sponsorship model to enable a
broader range of partnerships that are actively delivering
measurable value for our partners and the entire athletics
ecosystem.

Strategic goal

Strategic goals• We are committed to building a global fanbase of
millions of known fans with whom we can communicate
on a regular basis.

• Increase B2C sponsorship revenue and grow nonevent partnership programme opportunities.

Outputs

Outputs• End each season with a global championship eventthat will engage millions of fans around the world.

• Develop non-event sponsorship opportunities for key
programmes such as Kids’ Athletics and Athletics for a
Better World.

• Create a new global Championship event that will takeplace every second year, which is made for television
and will appeal to millions of people around the world.
• Innovate, evolve and improve current showcase
Championship events.
• Implement aggregated data and data infrastructure
solutions to enable a more personalized experience forour fans.
• Create digital partnerships and CRM tools to manage agrowing network of dedicated fans.

• Further increase prize money for athletes through ourannual existing and new Championship events anddeliver partnership opportunities to help elite athletes
build professional career pathways and increase
revenue.

• Develop and establish a global, out-of-stadium running
partnership structure and events calendar.
• Review advertising restrictions for athletes in an effort
to remove barriers to additional earnings and create
new ways that athletes can earn more.
• Identify and facilitate new opportunities to bringfresh funding into the sport to support existing andnew one-day meeting formats and platforms, notnecessarily owned by World Athletics.

• Redesign the web experience and launch a World
Athletics App to meet the demands of mobile fans.
• Augment the broadcast experience with rich data andcontent and continue to drive story based content
across all social platforms.
• Expanded AI capability beyond TV graphics to create
more personalised fan engagement and scalable
solutions.

25

Strategic Priorities and Primary Activities (2024-2027)

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World Athletics Pioneering Change

BRILLIAN T BAS I CS
Our ability to focus sharply on the activities that really make a difference in this four year journey will mean putting all
our day-to-day activities under the microscope and determining what we should be doing less of and how we can dothese activities more efficiently and less resource intensively without compromising the quality of what is necessarythat we are immensely proud of.
In addition, underpinning our delivery success are five fundamental areas where we will strive to excel each and everyday. These are our brilliant basics and are aligned to The World Plan:• A global network of trained and motivated people to facilitate and promote athletics around the world.
• Strong and connected Member Federations and Area Associations with the tools and skills to deliver on the ground.
• Best in class Governance at all levels of the sport that governs, protects and safeguards our sport and our people.
• An active and engaged group of partners and key influencers within the sport who mutually benefit fromparticipating in, contributing to and sharing this four-year journey.
• All athletics’ events, from global to national, to be leaders in reducing the environmental impact of their events andenhancing their social impact to help build a better world.

More Participation

Maximise participation at every
level of the sport and investingin elite athlete development

More People

Continue to invest in moreresources to deliver our sport
around the world at all levels

More Fans

More global fans choosing
athletics through personalised
access to content and athletesMore Partnerships

Evolve our sponsorship model
to enable a broader range ofpartnerships

Innovation
Competition
Streamlined World Championships
proposition and discipline
innovation
Fans
Designing new products andservices to reach new audiences
Brand
World Athletics IP extensions
outside of event delivery
Delivery
1-day meetings, out of stadiumrunning, Regional Championships
Commercial
Reimagined partnerships withathletes, ARs and shoe companies

Underpinned by our Brilliant Basics:
Global network of People; Strong and connected Member Federations
and Areas; Best in class Governance; Active & engaged key influencers;
Leaders in delivering sustainable events26

World Plan

www.worldathletics.org

WO RLD PL A N
The World Plan was developed in 2021 through a year-long consultation withstakeholders across athletics. Over 85% of our Member Federations
completed detailed questionnaires about the state of athletics in theircountry and their priorities for growth. And, through our Global Conversation
campaign, 25,000 individuals from 175 countries, across our sport, fromathletes to coaches, fans and recreational runners, gave us feedback andrecommendations. This was, without doubt, the largest review everundertaken as a sport, on our sport.
The result is an eight-year World Plan that sets clear objectives against thevision to grow the athletics with stated roles, responsibilities and desired
metrics for each objective. It builds on World Athletics four pillars for growth
Perception- more participation, more people, more fans, and moreWhilst
partners
and covers
79% of MFs consider
be strong into
the spectrum of athletics from school and recreational governanceathleticstothroughthe sport, this decreases to79%
elite performers. It is ambitious, setting metrics
for the 41%
67 foractions
againstfans.
which progress can be benchmarked. It is strategic but not prescriptive,
87% of respondents agreed
athletics
is the mostallowing each Federation to set their own prioritisationthat
andtimeframeandaccessible sport, and as such
87%
focus on areas which will deliver meaningful growth in theircountry.
It is ais the best
sport to create
healthier and fitter world.
designed to help everyone understand the goals and join
the journey that is
important to them – from HQ to Member Federations andanddescribedwider
82% ofAreas
respondents
athletics to be diverse andstakeholder groups.
82%
inclusive.
The World Plan addresses both elite programme priorities and the increased
interest in health and fitness and recreational running that we have seen overthe last few years. It also addresses the greater social responsibility andinterest in sustainability, linking to the health, education, diversity, gender,social and sustainability agendas which are becoming increasingly important
to communities and governments which, in turn, may help unlock additional
investment in our sport. Most of all it is the roadmap we have shared, andcontinue to share, with all our stakeholders, athletes and fans so they can join
us on this eight-year journey.
What is common in all these objectives is they come from deep and widePeople
ranging insights from organisations and individuals who are passionate about
Whilst 64% of professional
athletics and its future development. These insights callcoaches
for usandtovolunteers
embrace a
indicated there is a clear
64% of athletics.
shift in mindset about many aspects of the sportIt
requiresdevelopment pathway.
bravery and focus to challenge the status quo, try new things and thinkMFs reported that it wasdifferently. It is also understood that not everything thattried
willcoaches
be
notis
easy
to recruit(only 26% said coach
26%
universally popular, some initiatives may not work, but itrecruitment
sets ourframework
is easyor
and roadmap for everyone in the sport to be ambitiousvery
andeasy).
brave, to share insuccess and failure and to collaborate on shared goals.

Perception
79%

87%

82%

ParticWhilst 79% of MFs consider
governance to be strong inthe sport, this decreases to
41% for fans.

4

87% of respondents agreed
that athletics is the mostaccessible sport, and as suchis the best sport to create ahealthier and fitter world.

2

82% of respondents describedathletics to be diverse andinclusive.

6

Participation
47%

47% of respondents said
participating in athletics ispopular in their country.

24%

A lack of media coverage isperceived to be the biggest
single challenge to growing the
sport with 24% of respondents
saying this.

61%

61% of MFs reported that it
was important for Masters
Athletics to be better
incorporated into the sport.

People64%

26%

FaWhilst 64% of professionalcoaches and volunteers
indicated there is a clear
development pathway.

45

MFs reported that it was
not easy to recruit coaches(only 26% said coachrecruitment is easy orvery easy).

71

Fans
45%

71%

45% of all respondents said
elite level athletics was popularin their country.
Fans enjoy supporting
national team athletes andseeing the best athletescompeting live with 71% also
saying it was important to themthat athletes regularly compete
in their home nation.

27

World Athletics Pioneering Change

ST RATEGI C 4-Y E AR G OA LS AT A G L A N CE
This section brings together all the goals that sit under the 5 pillars. Each one has a set of specific outcomes that will
be delivered over the four years. These can be found in section 8 under Strategic Priorities and Primary Activities on
page 22.

Summary of strategic goals
and innovate our events and improve the quality of formats, disciplines and rules through the* Differentiate
creation of a robust, data driven focus on the athletics product and innovation which we test thoroughly before
implementing.
World Class Championship events; end the season with a new or existing global championship event and* Deliversupport one-day meetings, which we both lead or influence, so we can consistently showcase the best athletes andcreate must watch competition for fans.
new events and increase the quality of existing regional and global events to create clearer reasons for* Create
athletes to compete and fans to engage.
increase prize money for athletes through our annual existing and new Championship events and deliver* Furtherpartnership opportunities to help elite athletes build professional career pathways and increase revenue.	
more opportunities and reasons for people of all ages to participate in athletics (Kids’ Athletics, Masters,* Create
Para Athletics, City, Trail and Mountain running etc).
retain, reward and educate people in our sport and create more ways for them to be part of global athletics* Recruit,
regardless of region, age or level.
our appreciation and reward the vital contribution of our volunteers by creating a certification* Acknowledge
programme based on skills.

* Build a global fanbase of millions of known fans with whom we can communicate on a regular basis.
and equip Member Federations and Areas to impactfully contribute to the growth of athletics (KPIs set* Empower
through World Plan).

* Increase Business-to-Consumer sponsorship revenue and grow non-event partnership programme opportunities.

28

M E ASURI N G SUCCES S
For ambitious goals to be met, it is critical to establish what success looks like. As mentioned earlier in the document
we will know we will have been successful when in 2027 we see a sport that has grown through innovation ledchange, with more participation, more people, more fans and more partnerships across all forms of the sport, acrossthe world. A sport that has even greater global reach and significant value to those who invest in it. Behind thesedelivery targets sit quarterly and annual performance metrics (KPIs) to effectively and objectively measure andmonitor progress.

Evolved sport product creating more engaging
WAS Championships
metrics set for each WAS event supported by research, impact* Specificstudies and data collection and analysis.

* Successfully launch a new global Championship event from 2026 onwards.
More known fansmillion known fans with direct revenue over the four-year period* 5.4
of US$3m.

More skilled and active people in the sport* Skills gap analysis completed in 2024 with final KPIs set end of 2024.
* Global network of volunteers established.
* Global Centre for Coaching Excellence operational.
More participation from elite to grassroots
an economically viable model for athletes to generate more income and* Buildbuild a professional career as an elite international athlete.
of MFs running a Kids’ Athletics programme with a specific focus on* 90%
keeping kids in the sport beyond participation in a single programme or activity.

* Masters, Off Road & Para Athletics partnerships established.
More productive partnerships* Four new Business to Consumer Partnerships by 2027.
* Metrics set for total activation spend year on year.

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Measuring Successwww.worldathletics.org

World Athletics Pioneering Change

INNOVATIONRESPECTINTEGRITYLEADERSHIPCOMMITMENTEXCELLENCE
30

www.worldathletics.org

Our Values

OU R VA LUE S
Pioneering change requires a strong set of values across all of World
Athletics that deliver the behaviour we need across our sport.
Established as part of the Strategy for Growth plan in 2020 we
believe these values remain relevant and essential today and over the
coming four years.

Inspiring opportunity to create, explore, test out and develop
new ideas to capture interest, attention and achieve new positive
outcomes.
The way we treat people, from fellow competitors, to colleagues, partners
and all those involved in our sport. Ensuring we are always open, honest,
considerate and maintain the governing principles of our sport.
Our actions speak louder than our words in our consistent anduncompromising adherence to moral and ethical principles andpractices in everything we do.
Our role is not to own or dominate our sport but to provide
strong, clear, consistent leadership wherever we operate and at
every level.
We are focused, passionate and dedicated to achieving our goals
and helping others do the same so we all contribute and achieve.

To always be the best that we can be in our thinking
and our execution at all times.

31World Athletics Pioneering Change

FINANCIA L P ROJ ECT I O N SWorld Athletics’ normalised annual income is circa US$55 million per year, derived from three main sources:/ Our WAS Championships and marketing partner, Dentsu/ Partners and broadcasters/ The IOC
This income is not generated consistently across each four-year cycle but instead comes in peaks and troughs (forexample, the IOC Olympic Games Broadcast revenue share is paid every four years). Despite this we look to even out
our expenditure to match our annual income.
80% of World Athletics’ expenditure is directed towards athlete focused spend (through our events, Member
Federations and the AIU activity), with the remainder supporting the running of the Monaco-based HQ, governance ofthe sport and the running of the Athletics Integrity Unit
We are fortunate to have the financial security of long-term partnerships with our marketing partner Dentsu, the manyother commercial and broadcast partners and our Diamond League partner, Wanda.
We continue to proactively seek new commercial relationships and revenue streams in order to increase our incomebase. Over the last four-year strategy we increased our commercial partners from five to 10 and in the first quarter of2024 we have signed two new partners – Sony and Morinaga. This revenue and others over the next four years allows
us to do even more to grow and pioneer change in the sport, both directly and also through our Member Federations.
Whilst the work goes on to generate increased income for the future, the current strategic plan has been budgetedassuming only our existing income levels going forward. As a result, if, and when, additional resources become available,
this strategic plan can expand accordingly.
Managing our revenue and expenditure and matching it and our all our resources to activity levels will be a key part of
the annual review that World Athletics’ Executive Board will lead at the end of each financial year.

32

Conclusionwww.worldathletics.org

CONCLU S I O N
Athletics is the No.1 Olympic sport AND themost participated sport in the world. We have,
without question, the most talented, exciting andrelatable sportswomen and men in the world.
We are one of only two truly global sports with funded Federations driving and promoting athletics across over 200
countries around the world. Our Championships regularly showcase medal podium athletes from over 40 countries
with our finals featuring athletes from over 70 countries. No other sport is this diverse or globally represented.
It is not surprising that we have strong ambitions. Our sport is made up of athletes, coaches, meeting organisers,
Federations and HQ teams that are ambitious, fearless and hard working. This is why we know we can deliver thisstrategy over the next four years, creating a sport that has even greater global reach and significant value to those
who invest in it.
But as every successful track and field athlete will tell you, ambition without clear objectives, goals and an understandingof the journey to successful delivery is a waste of time. This strategy is the roadmap that we hope will encourage themillions of people invested in athletics to understand our ambition and join the journey we are planning to take. We havenot created it in isolation. Our key influencers, our athletes, our Member Federations and our HQ team have allcontributed, critiqued and, more importantly, agreed to step up and focus on doing less without compromising quality tocreate room for the innovation and improvements in the core product and related areas that will see athletics soar.
As with all strategic documents, the implementation of this strategy is broken down into goals, actions and activities
which we hope will engage everyone who loves our sport.
We have attempted to also bring into sharper focus the World Plan which was launched in 2021 and is the eight-year
journey that our Member Federations have developed to grow athletics in over 200 countries around the world.
The last part of our strategic framework is the annual business plan that is developed by World Athletics HQ andapproved and monitored by the Executive Board.
The annual business plan breaks down the four-year strategy into agreed and funded activities to achieve this fouryear strategy and also defines the priorities for the organisation. Our key priorities for 2024 - the first year of thisPioneering Change strategy - are listed on page 34. We hope you will see how they correspond to the pillars and goals
we have set out in this strategy. We will add the priorities for future years each year when our annual business plans are
finalised and signed off by the Executive Board.
We have never been more optimistic about the future of our sport or the talents of our athletes, including the young
talent emerging through our Federations in all of our Areas. The breadth, talent and quality of our athletes is better thanit has ever been, and we are grateful for all the work so many people do in our sport to nurture and develop that talent.
Together, with all our stakeholders, we are confident we will excel and shine over the coming four years and deliver thechanges we all want to see.

Sebastian Coe
World Athletics President

Jon Ridgeon
World Athletics CEO

33

World Athletics Pioneering Change

WO RLD AT H L ET I CS 2 0 2 4 KEY P R I O R I T Y A R E AS“

2024 is going to be the year of change. In a decadefrom now I want people to look back at 2024 andsay the decisions the sport made that year not only
future proofed the sport but significantly accelerated
its popularity and value. In the same way as people
today look back at 2016 and say the Reforms madeand voted on in 2016 was the single step change inrebuilding the integrity and credibility of athletics”

5 WAS events across 3 Continents and an Olympic Games in Paris where we intend/ Delivering
to cement our No. 1 Olympic Sport position.
1 million known fans. This means increasing our known fans from 500,000 to 1 million/ Deliveringby the end of 2024. Investing time and money into making sure we have the platform and thecontent to engage more with our fans.

and launching the new 2026 Global Championship event will be a key deliverable in/ Developing
2024. Through the detailed research we conducted during the Budapest World Championships
with fans (in stadium and at home), broadcasters and our athletes, we have some strong,evidence-based insights and stats that we are using to create this event.

the host for the 2027 World Championships is also a critical decision this year as it is/ Identifying
our showcase event ahead of the LA 28 Olympic Games. We are delighted that Beijing has been
awarded this event.

the athletics product. There are four key areas of focus – again using the research/ Innovatingcollected during the Budapest World Championships.

↳ Calendar reconfiguration so we end each season with a showcase World Championship Event↳ Timetable evolution to increase the pace and excitement of competition↳ Discipline and sport reform, particularly in the field, to ensure excitement and drama aremaximised.

↳ Out of Stadium strategy which is exploring the growth of road and off-road competition
which is such an important part of our sport.

34

World Athletics 2024 Key Priority Areas

www.worldathletics.org

35

www.worldathletics.org@WorldAthletics©World Athletics 2024.
All Rights Reserved.

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