Most global citizens plan to watch Olympics, especially track and field and soccer

A new survey indicates that almost three quarters (72%) of residents of 24 countries plan to watch at least some part of the events this year. The poll by global research company Ipsos, on behalf of Reuters News, finds that viewers intend to watch on television sets (65%), the Internet (23%), their smartphones (6%) and tablets (4%).

Global citizens appear especially interested in following track and field (20%) and soccer (20%) most closely, followed by swimming (16%), gymnastics (14%), volleyball (5%), tennis (5%), basketball (4%), boxing (3%) and cycling (2%).

The poll of 18,623 respondents in 24 countries finds that interest in the Games is high, with six in ten (62%) reporting they are interested in the Games (22% strongly, 40% somewhat) and only 37% reporting they are not (24% not very interested, 13% not at all interested). However, a sizeable minority (37%) indicate they are 'worried that a terrorist attack will happen during the Olympic Games".

The world will be watching

Seven in ten (72%) global citizens "plan to watch part of the 2012 Summer Olympics this year" - and at least half of the respondents in each country surveyed - while 13% have not decided yet and 15% do not plan to watch.

Three-quarters (75%) of South Africans plan to watch the Olympic Games.

Those from China (92%), South Korea (91%), India (90%), Mexico (86%) and Brazil (84%) are most likely to say they will watch the Olympics. Least likely to watch the games are those from Belgium (50%), Germany (54%), France (54%), Great Britain (61%), Hungary (66%), Canada (66%) and Sweden (66%).

Do you have plans to watch the Olympic games?

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How they plan to watch...

The Olympics will be watched on a variety of platforms. Most commonly, respondents indicate they will watch on television sets (65%) but they will also be using newer technologies to catch the Games: one quarter will do so on the Internet (23%) and one in twenty on their mobile devices (6%) or tablets (4%). Those from Mexico (82%) are most likely to watch on a TV, followed by those from South Korea (80%), Brazil (79%) and India (75%), while those from Belgium (48%), Saudi Arabia (49%), Germany (50%) and France (52%) are least likely to.

Residents of China are most likely to be watching via less traditional technologies. In fact, nearly the entire respondent base (94%) from China indicated so: 67% will watch on the Internet, 16% on their mobile phones and 11% on a tablet. Similarly, majorities in India (89%) will watch via these platforms: 50% online, 24% on phones and 15% on tablets. The countries next in line follow at some distance: South Korea (58% online, mobile and tablet combined), Saudi Arabia (54%) and Turkey (43%). Less than one in five of those in Belgium (14%), Italy (14%), Germany (15%), Australia (16%) and France (16%) will watch on these less traditional platforms. Interestingly, one in twenty 'strongly agree' they will download a mobile app in order to watch the Games live (5%) and to get updates on the Games (5%). Another one in seven might do so; 15% 'somewhat agree' they will download one for watching while 16% 'somewhat agree' they will download one for getting updates.

In South Africa 72% will watch the Games on television, while 15% state they will be watching on the Internet. Only 6% of South Africans would watch on their mobile phones whereas 5% state they will watch on tablets. Almost a fifth (17%) will download an app to watch the games and 22% say they'll download an app to keep them updated on the Games.

What They Want to See: Global focus on track and field, soccer...

Global citizens interested in the Olympics report the sports they plan to follow most closely are track and field (20%) and soccer (20%), followed by swimming (16%), gymnastics (14%), volleyball (5%), tennis (5%), basketball (4%), boxing (3%) and cycling (2%).

Top Three Sports Around the World

South Africans are most keen on track and field (33%), gymnastics (31%) and swimming (14%)

Interest is strong...

A majority of global citizens (62%) report they are interested in the Games (22% strongly, 40% somewhat) while only 37% reporting they are not (24% not very interested, 13% not at all interested). Interest appears highest in India (85%), China (82%), South Korea (78%) and Mexico (76%) and lowest in Italy (52%), Great Britain (50%), Germany (49%) and Belgium (45%). It is noteworthy that the Games are so popular around the world that more people intend to watch (72%) than actually express a definitive interest (62%).

In South Africa, just over a fifth (21%) state that they are very interested and the biggest chuck (45%) stating that they are somewhat interested. Almost a quarter (23%) is not very interested and 7% not at all interested.

...But fear of terrorism lurks

Almost four in every ten (37%) agree they are 'worried that a terrorist attack will happen during the Olympic Games' (8% strongly, 29% somewhat) while a majority of global citizens (63%) disagree (28% strongly, 35% somewhat). Those appearing most nervous about the possibility of a terrorist attack this summer are from Mexico (54% 'agree'), India (51%), Spain (50%) and China (48%) while those least nervous appear to be from Poland (21%), France (23%), Hungary (24%) and South Africa (27%).

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These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Global @dvisor poll conducted between on behalf of Reuters News. The survey instrument is conducted monthly in 24 countries via the Ipsos Online Panel system.

Interviews are conducted online and in South Africa, the percentages are representative of the online population in our country.

The countries reporting herein are Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the United States of America. An international sample of 18,623 adults aged 18-64 in the US and Canada, and age 16-64 in all other countries, were interviewed between June 5 -19. Approximately 1000+ individuals participated on a country by country basis with the exception of Argentina, Belgium, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden and Turkey, where each have a sample 500+. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to the most recent country Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. In China, India and South Africa the samples are slightly more educated and have a higher household income compared to the average citizen. A survey with an unweighted probability sample of this size and a 100% response rate would have an estimated margin of error of +/-3.1 percentage points for a sample of 1,000 and an estimated margin of error of +/- 4.5 percentage points for a sample of 500 19 times out of 20 per country of what the results would have been had the entire population of the specifically aged adults in that country been polled.