The year after an Olympic Games can bring a very different financial picture for a global sports federation. For World Athletics, 2025 was the first full year after the Paris Olympics, as the governing body continued staging major competitions and investing in the sport across its global network. One clear sign of that continued spending was the $13.4 million provided in grants to Area Associations and Member Federations during the year. With the sport moving towards a year-round schedule, its latest financial report had revealed a setback.

World Athletics suffered a $10.3 million loss in 2025, despite generating $69.2 million in like-for-like revenue, according to its 2025 Annual Report released on September 4. Total expenditure was $79.4 million, but the governing body reported that spending was not significantly higher when considering the additional investment made throughout sport. The figures exclude the Olympic Dividend, which World Athletics receives once every four years.

The report gives a detailed look at the governing body’s finances during the first full year following the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. World Athletics said its underlying revenue increased by 15 percent compared with the previous year when the Olympic Dividend is excluded. Once the Olympic Dividend is taken into account, World Athletics said it remains on course for a balanced budget over the 2024-27 cycle. It also maintained $37.3 million in cash at the halfway point of that cycle.

The annual result was a loss, but the governing body of the sport, World Athletics, put more money into the sport. Investment in grants for Area Associations and Member Federations increased 12 percent to $13.4 million in 2025. The governing body also extended the use of its Grant for Growth programme. Of the 189 Member Federations that qualify, 170 received funding for a project during 2025-26, with $3.4 million allocated, up 17 percent from 2024.

World Athletics is also investing significant funds into athletes. More than $50 million is scheduled to be distributed in prize money between 2024 and 2028, according to the organization. The increase in spending came during a year when athletics itself saw more competition. World Athletics registered 9,067 competitions worldwide in 2025 up from 7,791 in 2024. Continental Tour meetings also increased from 247 to 262, giving athletes more opportunities to compete and earn world ranking points.

Three major World Athletics Series events were held during the year: the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, the World Athletics Relays in Guangzhou and the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Together, those three events generated an economic impact of more than $586 million. Tokyo also produced a record global spread, with athletes from 84 countries reaching a final or finishing in the top eight at the World Championships.

Those numbers offered a clear picture of the scale of athletics, but World Athletics was also looking at how to keep that interest going beyond major championship weeks.

Sebastian Coe explains the year-round push

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe used the annual report to highlight the organization’s changing approach to the sport. “We are no longer a summer sport spanning just a few months,” Coe said. “We are a sport that is on show 12 months of the year.” That thinking has become an important part of World Athletics’ plans. Rather than relying mainly on the Olympic Games and World Championships to drive global attention, the organization has been expanding its competition calendar and developing new events during other parts of the four-year cycle.

The organisation also invested in fan research, in digital products, data and analytics, and in the presentation of its competitions, continuing to do so. World Athletics claimed in 2025 it had 2.1 million known fans, with their direct revenue totaling $1.5 million. The first World Athletics Ultimate Championship was one of the largest that was developed during 2025 that will be hosted in Budapest on September 11-13, 2026.

Competing in 28 different sports, the three-day contest includes some of the top athletes in the world and will be the first time that the prize pot of $10 million will be the highest in athletic history. Individual winners will be awarded $150,000, and all athletes who compete at the championship will be assured compensation.

Also, broadcasting and commercial rights remained the biggest source of World Athletics’ revenue in 2025. The organization also generated additional income through a new ticket marketing strategy for the Tokyo World Championships. That strategy generated more than $3 million for World Athletics, with the governing body saying it plans to develop the approach further to create additional revenue opportunities for future championship hosts and the organization itself.