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In the digital age, data has become an invaluable tool in almost all areas of society, and the world of sport is no exception. The availability of data related to this field can have a positive impact on the promotion of health and wellbeing, as well as on the improvement of physical performance of both athletes and citizens in general. Moreover, its benefits are also evident in the economic sphere, as this data can be used to publicise the sports offer or to generate new services, among other things.

Here are three examples of their impact.

Promoting an active and healthy lifestyle

The availability of public information can inspire citizens to participate in physical activity and sport, both by providing examples of its health benefits and by facilitating access to opportunities that suit their individual preferences and needs.

An example of the possibilities of open data in this field can be found in the project OpenActive. It is an initiative launched in 2016 by the Open Data Institute (ODI) together with Sport England, a public body aimed at encouraging physical activity for everyone in England. OpenActive allows sport providers to publish standardised open data, based on a standard developed by the ODI to ensure quality, interoperability and reliability. These data have enabled the development of tools to facilitate the search for and booking of activities, thus helping to combat citizens' physical inactivity. According to an external impact assessment, this project could have helped prevent up to 110 premature deaths, saved up to £3 million in healthcare costs and generated up to £20 million in productivity gains per year. In addition, it has had a major economic impact for the operators participating that share their data by increasing their customers and thus their profits.

Optimisation of physical work

The data provides teams, coaches and athletes with access to a wealth of information about competitions and their performance, allowing them to conduct detailed analysis and find ways to improve. This includes data on game statistics, health, etc.

In this respect, the French National Agency for Sport, together with the National Institute for Sport, Experience and Performance (INSEP) and the General Directorate for Sport, have developed the Sport Data Hub - FFS. The project was born in 2020 with the idea of boosting the individual and collective performance of French sport in the run-up to the Olympic Games in Pays 2024. It consists of the creation of a collaborative tool for all those involved in the sports movement (federations, athletes, coaches, technical teams, institutions and researchers) to share data that allows for aggregate comparative analysis at national and international level.

Research to understand the impact of data in areas such as health and the economy

Data related to physical activity can also be used in scientific research to analyse the effects of exercise on health and help prevent injury or disease. They can also help us to understand the economic impact of sporting activities.

As an example, in 2021 the European Commission launched the report Mapping of sport statistics and data in the EU, with data on the economic and social impact of sport, both at EU and member state level, between 2012 and 2021. The study identifies available data sources and collects quantitative and qualitative data. These data are used to compile a series of indicators of the impact of sport on the economy and society, including an entire section focusing on health.

This type of study can be used by public bodies to develop policies to promote these activities and to provide citizens with sport-related services and resources adapted to their specific needs. A measure that could help to prevent diseases and thus save on health costs.

Where to find open data related to sport?

In order to carry out these projects, reliable data sources are needed. At datos.gob.es you can find various datasets on this topic. Most of them have been published by local administrations and refer to sports facilities and equipment, as well as events of this nature.

Within the National Catalogue, DEPORTEData stands out. It is a database of the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sport for the storage and dissemination of statistical results in the field of sport. Through their website they offer magnitudes structured in two large blocks:

•  Cross-sectional estimates on employment and enterprises, expenditure by households and public administration, education, foreign trade and tourism, all linked to sport.
•  Sector-specific information, including indicators on federated sport, coach training, doping control, sporting habits, facilities and venues, as well as university and school championships.

At the European level, we can visit the European Open Data Portal (data.europa.eu), with more than 40,000 datasets on sport, or Eurostat. And if we want to take a closer look at citizens' behaviour, we can go to the Eurobarometer on sport and physical activity, whose data can also be found on data.europa.eu. Similarly, at the global level, the World Health Organisation provides datasets on the effects of physical inactivity.

In conclusion, there is a need to promote the openness of quality, up-to-date and reliable data on sport. Information with a great impact not only for society, but also for the economy, and can help us improve the way we participate, compete and enjoy sport.

Open data provides relevant information on the state and evolution of different sectors, including employment. Employment data typically includes labour force statistics and information on employees, as well as economic, demographic or benefits-related data, interviews, salaries, vacancies, etc.   

This information can provide a clear picture of a country's economic health and the well-being of its citizens, encouraging informed decision-making. In addition, they can also serve as a basis for the creation of innovative solutions to assist in a variety of tasks.   

In this article we will review some sources of open data on job quality, as well as examples of use to show the potential benefits of re-use. 

Where to find employment data? 

In datos.gob.es a large number of data sets on employment are available, with the National Statistics Institute (INE) standing out as the national publisher. Thanks to the INE data, we can find out who is employed by sector of activity, type of studies or working day, as well as the reasons for having a part-time job. The data provided by this entity also allows us to know the employment situation of people with disabilities or by sex.   

Other sources of data where you can find information of interest is the State Public Employment Service (sepe.es), where you can find statistical data on job seekers, jobs and placements, from May 2005 to the present day. To this must be added the regional bodies, many of which have launched their own open employment data portal. This is the case of the Junta de Andalucía.  

If we are interested in making a comparison between countries, we can also turn to data from the OECD, Eurostat or the World Bank. 

All these data can be of great interest to:  

• Policy makers, to better understand and react to labour market dynamics.  
• Employers, to optimise their recruitment activities.  
• Job seekers, to make better career choices.  
• Education and training institutions, to adapt curricula to the needs of the labour market. 

Use cases of open data in the employment sector 

It is just as important to have sources of open employment data as it is to know how to interpret the information they offer about the sector. This is where reusers come in, taking advantage of this raw material to create data products that can respond to different needs. Let's look at some examples: 

• Decision-making and implementation of active policies. Active labour market policies are tools that governments use to intervene directly in the labour market, through training, guidance, incentives to hiring, etc. To do so, they need to be aware of market trends and needs. This has led many public bodies to set up observatories, such as the SEPE or the Principality of Asturias. There are also specific observatories for each area, such as the one for Equality and Employment. At the European level, Eurostat's proposal stands out: to establish requirements to create a pan-European system for the production of official statistics and specific policy analyses using open data on online job vacancies. This project has been carried out using the BDTI platform. But this field is not limited to the public sector; other actors can also submit proposals. This is the case of Iseak, a non-profit organisation that promotes a research and transfer centre in economics. Among other questions, Iseak seeks to answer questions such as: does the increase in the minimum wage lead to job destruction or why is there a gender gap in the market? 
• Accountability. All this information is not only useful for public bodies, but also for citizens to assess whether their government's employment policies are working. For this reason, many governments, such as Castilla y León, make this data available to citizens through easy-to-understand visualisations. Data journalism also plays a leading role in this field, with pieces that bring information closer to the general public, such as these examples of salaries or the level of unemployment by area. If you want to know how to make this type of visualisations, we explain them in this step-by-step exercise that characterises the demand for employment and hiring registered in Spain. 
• Boosting job opportunities. In order to bring information of interest to citizens who are actively seeking employment or new job opportunities, there are tools, such as this app for public employment calls or grants, based on open data. There are also town councils that create solutions to boost employment and the economy in their locality, such as the APP Paterna Empléate. These apps are a much simpler and more user-friendly way of consuming data than traditional job search portals. Barcelona Provincial Council has gone a step further. This tool uses AI applied to open data to, among other purposes, offer personalised services for individuals, companies and rural sectors, as well as access to job offers. The information it offers comes from notice boards, as well as from the Profile of the contracting party and various municipal websites. 
• Development of advanced solutions. Employment data can also be used to power a wide variety of machine learning use cases. One example is this US platform for financial analytics that provides data and information to investors and companies. It uses US unemployment rate data, combined with other data such as postcodes, demographics or weather data.

In short, thanks to this type of data we can not only learn more about the employment situation in our environment, but also feed solutions that help boost the economy or facilitate access to job opportunities. It is therefore a category of data whose publication should be promoted by public bodies at all levels.