The Most Popular Sports in Sweden (Top 30 Ranked)

Soccer leads Sweden with 1,713,570 active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott) in 2024, ahead of Athletics and Golf. Ranking of 30 sports.

This page ranks the sports of Sweden by one number that is collected the same way for all of them: Per-federation count of people counted as active at least once during the year in an activity of that federation’s member clubs, as athlete, coach, leader or official, compiled from the sports movement’s own registration system IdrottOnline and published by Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF), the Swedish government’s national research centre for sport; the same definition is applied to all 72 federations, so the ranking is comparable across sports even though one person can be counted in more than one federation. The figures come from Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF) / Riksidrottsforbundet, Idrottsstatistik.

Soccer is on top, followed by Athletics and Golf. The full table below covers 30 sports, and every section further down names the source for the figure it uses.

The Most Popular Sports in Sweden

The table counts active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott), 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. The reference year is 2024.

#	Sport	Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott)	Governing body
1	Soccer	1,713,570	Swedish Football Association
2	Athletics	708,190	Swedish Athletics Association
3	Golf	553,636	Swedish Golf Federation
4	Gymnastics	523,433	Swedish Gymnastics Federation
5	Floorball	454,470	Swedish Floorball Federation
6	Ice Hockey	310,841	Swedish Ice Hockey Association
7	Swimming	279,251	Swedish Swimming Federation
8	Handball	206,222	Swedish Handball Federation
9	Motorcycle and Snowmobile Sport	169,121	Svemo (Swedish Motorcycle and Snowmobile Sports Federation)
10	Equestrian Sports	166,709	Swedish Equestrian Federation
11	Skiing	154,255	Swedish Ski Association
12	Basketball	148,584	Swedish Basketball Federation
13	Ice Skating, Sledge and Wheel Sports	122,874	Swedish Ice Skating, Sledge and Wheel Sports Federation
14	Budo and Martial Arts	121,927	Swedish Budo and Martial Arts Federation
15	Tennis	105,852	Swedish Tennis Federation
16	Sailing	89,679	Swedish Sailing Federation
17	Orienteering	88,896	Swedish Orienteering Federation
18	Auto Racing	84,201	Swedish Automobile Sports Federation
19	Table Tennis	80,227	Swedish Table Tennis Association
20	Cycling	70,685	Swedish Cycling Federation
21	Bandy	58,664	Swedish Bandy Federation
22	Volleyball	58,121	Swedish Volleyball Federation
23	Badminton	57,642	Swedish Badminton Association
24	Dancesport	56,935	Swedish Dancesport Federation
25	Figure Skating	52,558	Swedish Figure Skating Association
26	Boxing	50,835	Swedish Boxing Federation
27	Taekwondo	42,647	Swedish Taekwondo Federation
28	Skateboarding	37,743	Swedish Skateboard Federation
29	Wrestling	30,846	Swedish Wrestling Federation
30	Squash	30,218	Swedish Squash Federation

One caveat applies to every ranking of this kind: someone who plays two sports is counted twice, once in each federation, and sports people mostly do on their own, such as running or hiking, barely show up at all.

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
Soccer	10,786	Allsvenskan, Sweden’s top football division, set a new average attendance record for a 16 team league in the 2024 season.
Ice Hockey	7,047	SHL, Sweden’s top ice hockey league, drew its highest ever average attendance in the 2025/26 season.

Is There a National Sport of Sweden?

Sweden has no national sport laid down by law or by government decision. Sweden has no sport officially designated as national sport by law or government decision; researched via Sveriges Radio’s interview with sports historian Torbjorn Andersson (Malmo University), who states the term has been applied informally to different sports over time rather than fixed by decree.

• Soccer. Football is treated as Sweden’s de facto national sport by both its own governing body and outside observers, based on its size and cultural reach.
• Ice Hockey. Ice hockey took over bandy’s earlier informal status as a national sport in Sweden from the 1970s onward, according to sports historian Torbjorn Andersson.

Sports That Were Invented in Sweden

• Gymnastics. The training system known internationally as Swedish gymnastics was developed in Stockholm by Pehr Henrik Ling, who founded the Royal Gymnastics Central Institute there in 1813.
• Floorball. Floorball developed out of clubs formed in Sala, Sweden in the late 1970s, and the Swedish Floorball Federation, the sport’s first national federation, was founded there in 1981.
• Orienteering. Organized orienteering traces to a landmark competition held near Saltsjobaden outside Stockholm on 25 March 1919, organized by Major Ernst Killander, who is regarded as the father of the modern sport.

#1 Soccer

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 1,713,570 (Swedish Football Association, 2024)
• Top national league: Allsvenskan
• Best known athlete: Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Sweden’s all time leading scorer for the men’s national team, with 62 goals in 122 caps between 2001 and 2021

Soccer is the largest sport in Sweden by a wide margin. The Swedish Football Association counted 1,713,570 people active in its member clubs in November 2024, more than double the figure for any other federation in the country.

The men’s top division, Allsvenskan, is the sport’s showcase league. Zlatan Ibrahimovic remains the national team’s all time top scorer, with 62 goals in 122 appearances for Sweden between 2001 and 2021.

#2 Athletics

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 708,190 (Swedish Athletics Association, 2024)
• Best known athlete: Armand Duplantis. Two time Olympic pole vault champion, three time world champion and 14 time world record breaker, most recently clearing 6.30m at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo

Athletics is Sweden’s second largest sport by participation, with the Swedish Athletics Association recording 708,190 people active in its clubs in 2024. Riksidrottsforbundet notes that a large share of those members are affiliated through Friskis och Svettis, the fitness organization, rather than through competitive track and field clubs.

The sport’s best known current athlete is pole vaulter Armand Duplantis, a two time Olympic champion and three time world champion who has broken the world record 14 times, reaching 6.30m at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

#3 Golf

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 553,636 (Swedish Golf Federation, 2024)

Golf ranks third among Swedish sports by participation. The Swedish Golf Federation counted 553,636 people active in its clubs in 2024, reflecting the country’s dense network of golf courses.

The federation’s membership is spread across hundreds of clubs nationwide, making golf one of the most widely practiced sports among Swedish adults.

#4 Gymnastics

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 523,433 (Swedish Gymnastics Federation, 2024)

Gymnastics is one of Sweden’s largest club sports, with 523,433 people counted as active in Swedish Gymnastics Federation clubs in 2024.

The sport has deep historical roots in the country. Pehr Henrik Ling founded the Royal Gymnastics Central Institute in Stockholm in 1813, and the training system he developed there became known internationally as Swedish gymnastics.

#5 Floorball

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 454,470 (Swedish Floorball Federation, 2024)
• Top national league: Svenska Superligan

Floorball, known in Sweden as innebandy, is the country’s fifth largest club sport with 454,470 people active in Swedish Floorball Federation clubs in 2024.

The sport grew out of clubs founded in Sala in the late 1970s, and the Swedish Floorball Federation itself was formed in November 1981, making Sweden the sport’s country of origin.

#6 Ice Hockey

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 310,841 (Swedish Ice Hockey Association, 2024)
• Top national league: SHL
• Best known athlete: Nicklas Lidstrom. Won the Norris Trophy seven times, second only to Bobby Orr, and won the Stanley Cup four times with Detroit before his 2015 induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame

Ice hockey ranks sixth by club participation, with the Swedish Ice Hockey Association recording 310,841 people active in its clubs in 2024, well behind soccer but with strong attendance at the top level.

Nicklas Lidstrom is the sport’s most decorated Swedish export, winning the Norris Trophy seven times and the Stanley Cup four times over an NHL career that led to his Hockey Hall of Fame induction in 2015.

#7 Swimming

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 279,251 (Swedish Swimming Federation, 2024)
• Best known athlete: Sarah Sjostrom. Became the first Swedish woman to win an Olympic swimming gold medal, setting a world record in the 100m butterfly at the Rio 2016 Games, and has since become a 14 time world champion

Swimming is Sweden’s seventh largest club sport, with the Swedish Swimming Federation counting 279,251 people active in its clubs in 2024.

Sarah Sjostrom is the sport’s leading figure internationally. She became the first Swedish woman to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming, setting a world record in the 100m butterfly at the Rio 2016 Olympics, and has gone on to become a 14 time world champion.

#8 Handball

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 206,222 (Swedish Handball Federation, 2024)
• Top national league: Handbollsligan

Handball is Sweden’s eighth largest sport by club participation, with 206,222 people recorded as active in Swedish Handball Federation clubs in 2024.

The men’s national team has a long international pedigree, and the domestic top flight, Handbollsligan, remains the sport’s highest level of competition in the country.

#9 Motorcycle and Snowmobile Sport

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 169,121 (Svemo (Swedish Motorcycle and Snowmobile Sports Federation), 2024)

Motorcycle and snowmobile sport, organized under the federation Svemo, ranks ninth with 169,121 people active in its clubs in 2024.

The federation covers a range of disciplines from speedway and motocross to snowmobile racing, drawing participation across much of rural and northern Sweden.

#10 Equestrian Sports

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 166,709 (Swedish Equestrian Federation, 2024)

Equestrian sport rounds out the top ten, with the Swedish Equestrian Federation recording 166,709 people active in its clubs in 2024.

The federation’s membership is overwhelmingly female according to the same 2024 statistics, making it one of the most gender skewed of Sweden’s largest sports federations.

#11 Skiing

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 154,255 (Swedish Ski Association, 2024)

Skiing, covering both cross country and alpine disciplines under the Swedish Ski Association, had 154,255 people active in its clubs in 2024.

Cross country skiing in particular has long been named alongside soccer and ice hockey as one of the sports most closely tied to Swedish sporting identity.

#12 Basketball

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 148,584 (Swedish Basketball Federation, 2024)
• Top national league: Basketligan

Basketball had 148,584 people active in Swedish Basketball Federation clubs in 2024, placing it twelfth among Sweden’s sports.

The domestic men’s top division is Basketligan, the highest level of club competition for the sport in the country.

#13 Ice Skating, Sledge and Wheel Sports

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 122,874 (Swedish Ice Skating, Sledge and Wheel Sports Federation, 2024)

The federation covering speed skating, sledding and wheel sports counted 122,874 people active in its clubs in 2024.

It brings together several smaller disciplines under one national body rather than representing a single competition format.

#14 Budo and Martial Arts

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 121,927 (Swedish Budo and Martial Arts Federation, 2024)

The Swedish Budo and Martial Arts Federation, covering disciplines such as judo, karate and aikido under one umbrella, recorded 121,927 people active in its clubs in 2024.

It is one of the largest combined martial arts federations in the country, separate from sport specific federations such as taekwondo, boxing and wrestling.

#15 Tennis

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 105,852 (Swedish Tennis Federation, 2024)

Tennis had 105,852 people active in Swedish Tennis Federation clubs in 2024, keeping it among the country’s top fifteen sports by participation.

Sweden has a long tradition of producing internationally successful tennis players, with the sport’s domestic club network spread across the country.

#16 Sailing

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 89,679 (Swedish Sailing Federation, 2024)

Sailing recorded 89,679 people active in Swedish Sailing Federation clubs in 2024.

Sweden’s long coastline and extensive archipelagos support a dense network of sailing clubs, particularly around Stockholm and the west coast.

#17 Orienteering

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 88,896 (Swedish Orienteering Federation, 2024)

Orienteering had 88,896 people active in Swedish Orienteering Federation clubs in 2024.

The sport traces its organized origins to Sweden. Major Ernst Killander organized a landmark competition near Saltsjobaden outside Stockholm on 25 March 1919, with 155 of 217 registered entrants starting, and the Swedish Orienteering Federation was founded on 6 January 1938 at a meeting in Stockholm.

#18 Auto Racing

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 84,201 (Swedish Automobile Sports Federation, 2024)

Auto racing, organized separately from motorcycle and snowmobile sport, counted 84,201 people active in Swedish Automobile Sports Federation clubs in 2024.

The federation covers circuit racing, rallying and related disciplines and is a distinct national body from Svemo, which governs two wheeled motorsport.

#19 Table Tennis

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 80,227 (Swedish Table Tennis Association, 2024)

Table tennis had 80,227 people active in Swedish Table Tennis Association clubs in 2024.

Sweden has a strong historical pedigree in the sport at the international level, supported by a wide network of domestic clubs.

#20 Cycling

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 70,685 (Swedish Cycling Federation, 2024)

Competitive cycling, organized under the Swedish Cycling Federation, recorded 70,685 people active in its clubs in 2024.

This figure covers organized club cycling and racing disciplines, and is separate from everyday commuter cycling, which is not part of this club based ranking.

#21 Bandy

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 58,664 (Swedish Bandy Federation, 2024)
• Top national league: Elitserien

Bandy, a winter sport played on ice with a ball rather than a puck, had 58,664 people active in Swedish Bandy Federation clubs in 2024.

According to sports historian Torbjorn Andersson, bandy was the first sport in Sweden to be publicly called a national sport, in 1947, before ice hockey later took over that informal status.

#22 Volleyball

• Active participants in club sport (aktiv i idrott): 58,121 (Swedish Volleyball Federation, 2024)
• Top national league: Volleyallsvenskan

Volleyball counted 58,121 people active in Swedish Volleyball Federation clubs in 2024, placing it just behind bandy.

The domestic top division, Volleyallsvenskan, is contested for both the men’s and women’s game.

Sources

• Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF) / Riksidrottsforbundet, Idrottsstatistik
• Foreningen Svensk Elitfotboll (SEF)
• Svenska Hockeyligan (SHL)
• Sveriges Radio, interview with historian Torbjorn Andersson
• Gymnastik- och idrottshogskolan (GIH), Stockholm
• Svenska Innebandyforbundet
• Svenska Orienteringsforbundet
• Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF) / Riksidrottsforbundet, Idrottsstatistik
• Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF) / Riksidrottsforbundet, Idrottsstatistik
• Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF) / Riksidrottsforbundet, Idrottsstatistik
• Centrum for idrottsforskning (CIF) / Riksidrottsforbundet, Idrottsstatistik

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.

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