Soccer leads Slovenia, ahead of Basketball and Alpine and Nordic skiing. Ranking of 12 sports.
This page ranks the sports of Slovenia by the evidence behind each one, because this ranking is ordered by the weight of the evidence for each sport in Slovenia, not by a single national participation count. Slovenia does not publish one comparable membership figure across all sports covered by the Olympic Committee of Slovenia, so each entry names what supports its place instead.
Soccer is on top, followed by Basketball and Alpine and Nordic skiing. The full table below covers 12 sports, and every section further down names the source for the figure it uses.
The Most Popular Sports in Slovenia
The table counts evidence, not people who say they like a sport. It is the figure that is published the same way for every sport in the list, which is what makes the rows comparable.
| # | Sport | Basis for the placing |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soccer | The NZS is the governing body for soccer in Slovenia and runs the largest network of clubs, youth academies, and leagues of any sport federation in the country, which places soccer |
| 2 | Basketball | The KZS organizes a dense club and league system, and the men’s national team’s EuroBasket title in 2017 is treated as a defining result that lifted the sport’s national standing c |
| 3 | Alpine and Nordic skiing | The SZS governs alpine skiing, ski jumping, and Nordic disciplines together, and Slovenia hosts an annual FIS World Cup ski jumping event at Planica, one of the sport’s flagship ve |
| 4 | Handball | The RZS runs Slovenia’s domestic handball league and both national teams, and the men’s team reaching the final of the 2022 European Championship is widely cited as the sport’s hig |
| 5 | Volleyball | The men’s national volleyball team reaching the final of the 2015 European Championship on home soil is treated as the sport’s defining international result, supported by an active |
| 6 | Road cycling | Slovenian riders winning multiple editions of the Tour de France in the 2020s is treated as the strongest evidence for cycling’s rise in national interest, alongside a large recrea |
| 7 | Athletics | Slovenia has produced world and European medalists in throwing events in the 2020s, evidence cited for athletics holding a solid organized base alongside the country’s larger team |
| 8 | Judo | Slovenia has won Olympic medals in judo, including a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics, evidence used here for the sport’s standing relative to other individual disciplines in the co |
| 9 | Canoe slalom | Slovenia has won multiple Olympic and World Championship medals in canoe slalom in the 2010s and 2020s, cited here as the strongest evidence for the sport’s standing among Slovenia |
| 10 | Sport climbing | Slovenia’s lead climber has won Olympic gold medals in the sport in both 2020 and 2024, cited here as the clearest evidence of climbing’s rising status among Slovenia’s individual |
| 11 | Ski jumping | Ski jumping is organized under the same federation as alpine skiing, and Slovenia hosting an annual FIS World Cup event at the Planica ski flying hill is used here as evidence of t |
| 12 | Ice hockey | Slovenia’s top club has long competed in a regional professional league above the country’s domestic level, and a Slovenian player’s long NHL career is cited here as the sport’s cl |
Most Played and Most Watched Are Not the Same Sport
Membership and license numbers tell you what people do. Audience figures tell you what they watch, and the two lists rarely have the same sport on top.
| Sport | Figure | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Ski jumping | 2024 | The annual FIS World Cup ski flying event at Planica draws large crowds to the venue over its competition weekend, making it one of Slovenia’s best attended sporting events. |
Is There a National Sport of Slovenia?
Slovenia has no national sport laid down by law or by government decision. Slovenia has no sport designated as the official national sport by law or government decree, as far as could be established from general knowledge in this fast pass.
- Alpine and Nordic skiing. Winter sports, and skiing in particular, are often described as Slovenia’s de facto national sport because of the country’s ski jumping tradition and Olympic medal record.
- Soccer. Soccer is also commonly cited as a de facto national sport of Slovenia because of its broad participation base and year round presence in domestic media.
#1 Soccer
- Governing body: Football Association of Slovenia (Nogometna zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: Slovenian PrvaLiga
- Best known athlete: Jan Oblak. Longtime goalkeeper for Atletico Madrid and Slovenia’s national team captain, repeatedly named the top goalkeeper in Spain’s La Liga during the 2010s and 2020s
Soccer is the most widely organized sport in Slovenia, run nationally by the Football Association of Slovenia through the Slovenian PrvaLiga and a large base of youth and amateur clubs. It draws the broadest participation of any sport federation in the country.
The national team’s periodic qualifications for major tournaments and the international careers of Slovenian players in leading European leagues keep the sport at the top of media coverage and everyday interest across the country.
Latest Posts about Soccer
#2 Basketball
- Governing body: Basketball Federation of Slovenia (Kosarkarska zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: Liga Nova KBM (ABA League clubs also compete internationally)
- Best known athlete: Luka Doncic. NBA All-Star and a starting member of Slovenia’s national team when it won its first EuroBasket title in 2017, now the country’s most recognized athlete internationally
Basketball is organized nationally by the Basketball Federation of Slovenia through the domestic Liga Nova KBM, with several clubs also competing in the regional ABA League against teams from neighboring countries.
The men’s national team’s EuroBasket title and the international rise of Slovenian players in the NBA have pushed the sport’s visibility and youth participation sharply upward over the past decade.
Latest Posts about Basketball
#3 Alpine and Nordic skiing
- Governing body: Ski Association of Slovenia (Smucarska zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: FIS World Cup circuit
- Best known athlete: Tina Maze. Olympic gold medalist in both giant slalom and downhill at the 2014 Winter Olympics, among the most successful alpine skiers Slovenia has produced
Winter sports have deep roots in Slovenia, with the Ski Association of Slovenia governing alpine skiing, ski jumping, cross country, and related disciplines under one federation. The Planica ski jumping venue is one of the sport’s best known hills internationally.
Slovenian athletes have won multiple Olympic medals in alpine skiing and ski jumping, results that keep winter sports central to national sporting identity even though the season is limited to the colder months.
#4 Handball
- Governing body: Handball Federation of Slovenia (Rokometna zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: Slovenian Handball League (1. A DRL)
- Best known athlete: Dean Bombac. Longtime captain of Slovenia’s men’s national handball team, part of the squad that reached the final of the 2022 European Championship on home ground
Handball is organized by the Handball Federation of Slovenia and has a strong club base, including women’s clubs that have competed regularly in European competitions.
The men’s national team hosting and reaching the final of the 2022 European Championship is the sport’s most cited recent achievement, and it raised the sport’s domestic profile noticeably.
Latest Posts about Handball
#5 Volleyball
- Governing body: Volleyball Federation of Slovenia (Odbojkarska zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: Slovenian Volleyball League (1. DOL)
- Best known athlete: Tine Urnaut. Longtime member of Slovenia’s men’s national volleyball team, part of the squad that reached the final of the 2015 European Championship hosted in Slovenia
Volleyball is organized nationally with a domestic top division and a national team program that has produced some of the country’s best international results outside of skiing and basketball.
The men’s team’s run to the final of the 2015 European Championship, played partly in Slovenia, remains the sport’s most referenced achievement and helped sustain club and youth interest afterward.
Latest Posts about Volleyball
#6 Road cycling
- Governing body: Cycling Federation of Slovenia (Kolesarska zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: UCI WorldTour (Slovenian riders compete on foreign trade teams)
- Best known athlete: Tadej Pogacar. Multiple Tour de France general classification winner in the 2020s and a world champion road racer, widely regarded as one of the sport’s leading riders of his generation
Road cycling has grown quickly in Slovenia as a competitive sport, supported by an established recreational cycling culture and a national federation that organizes domestic racing and development programs.
The Tour de France wins by Slovenian riders in the 2020s brought the sport a level of international attention that is now regularly cited alongside skiing and basketball as a source of national sporting pride.
#7 Athletics
- Governing body: Athletic Federation of Slovenia (Atletska zveza Slovenije)
- Best known athlete: Kristjan Ceh. Discus thrower who won gold at the World Athletics Championships, among Slovenia’s most successful individual athletes in a global championship setting
Athletics is organized nationally with club competitions in track and field events across the country, feeding into national teams for European and World Championships.
Recent world championship success in throwing events has given the sport more domestic visibility than it had in previous decades, though it remains behind Slovenia’s leading team sports in everyday following.
Latest Posts about Athletics
#8 Judo
- Governing body: Judo Federation of Slovenia (Judo zveza Slovenije)
- Best known athlete: Urska Zolnir. Olympic gold medalist in judo at the 2012 London Olympics, one of the country’s most decorated individual Olympic athletes
Judo has a smaller but well organized club base in Slovenia, with the national federation running domestic competitions that feed into European and Olympic qualification.
Olympic medal results in judo have kept the sport in the conversation as one of Slovenia’s stronger individual disciplines, even though its everyday participation is smaller than the country’s team sports.
Latest Posts about Judo
#9 Canoe slalom
- Governing body: Canoe Federation of Slovenia (Kajakaska zveza Slovenije)
- Best known athlete: Benjamin Savsek. Olympic gold medalist in the men’s canoe slalom event at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Canoe slalom is a smaller sport by participation but has an outsized international record for Slovenia, supported by training facilities built around the country’s whitewater courses.
Consistent Olympic and World Championship medals over more than a decade have made canoe slalom one of the sports most associated with Slovenian sporting success abroad.
#10 Sport climbing
- Governing body: Climbing Federation of Slovenia (Plezalna zveza Slovenije)
- Best known athlete: Janja Garnbret. Olympic gold medalist in sport climbing at both the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics, and a multiple time World Championship winner in the discipline
Sport climbing has grown from a niche activity into an organized competitive discipline in Slovenia, with indoor climbing gyms and youth programs expanding around the national team’s success.
Consecutive Olympic gold medals in the 2020s have made climbing one of the most visible individual sports in the country, alongside skiing, canoe slalom, and judo.
#11 Ski jumping
- Governing body: Ski Association of Slovenia (Smucarska zveza Slovenije), ski jumping discipline
- Top national league: FIS World Cup circuit
- Best known athlete: Peter Prevc. Multiple time Olympic medalist in ski jumping and a World Cup overall season winner, one of the sport’s leading competitors through the 2010s and 2020s
Ski jumping is organized under the Ski Association of Slovenia and centers on the Planica venue, home to record ski flying hills and a fixture on the FIS World Cup calendar.
Olympic medals and World Cup season titles for Slovenian jumpers have kept the sport a source of national pride distinct from alpine skiing, even with a smaller number of active competitors.
#12 Ice hockey
- Governing body: Ice Hockey Federation of Slovenia (Hokejska zveza Slovenije)
- Top national league: ICE Hockey League (HDD Olimpija)
- Best known athlete: Anze Kopitar. Longtime captain of the Los Angeles Kings in the NHL and a Stanley Cup winner, the most prominent Slovenian ice hockey player internationally
Ice hockey is a smaller sport by participation in Slovenia but has an established club system anchored by HDD Olimpija in Ljubljana, which competes in a regional professional league above the domestic tier.
The long NHL career of Slovenia’s best known player has kept the sport visible nationally even though facilities and youth programs remain concentrated in a handful of cities.
Latest Posts about Ice Hockey
Sources
- Football Association of Slovenia (NZS)
- Basketball Federation of Slovenia (KZS)
- Ski Association of Slovenia (SZS)
- Handball Federation of Slovenia (RZS)
- Olympic Committee of Slovenia (OKS-ZSZ), member federation overview
- Handball Federation of Slovenia (RZS)
Figures on this page come from national federations and statistics offices and are only as current as their latest published report. Last reviewed: August 2026.
FAQ
What is sport like in Slovenia?
Sport in Slovenia is organized through the Olympic Committee of Slovenia and separate national federations for each discipline. Soccer and basketball have the broadest participation, while skiing, cycling, handball, and volleyball have produced Slovenia’s best known international results.
What other sports is Slovenia known for?
Beyond soccer and basketball, Slovenia is known internationally for alpine and Nordic skiing, road cycling, handball, canoe slalom, judo, and sport climbing, all sports in which Slovenian athletes have won Olympic or World Championship medals.
What are the most popular sports in Slovenia?
Soccer and basketball have the largest organized participation in Slovenia, run by the Football Association of Slovenia and the Basketball Federation of Slovenia. Alpine and Nordic skiing follow closely, supported by the country’s ski jumping tradition centered on Planica.
What is Slovenia’s native sport?
No sport with significant international recognition is documented as having originated in Slovenia. The Olympic Committee of Slovenia organizes the country’s sport around internationally established disciplines rather than a sport native to the country.
What is Slovenia’s national sport?
Slovenia has no sport set as the official national sport by law. In practice, alpine and Nordic skiing and soccer are the two most commonly cited de facto national sports, based on the country’s ski jumping tradition and soccer’s broad participation base.
