Scandinavian rise in the NCAA: How Scandinavia is following the trend in the booming American college sports landscape
The American college sports landscape has never been more vibrant. The NCAA has just announced that
2021-22 saw a record-breaking participation of over 520,000 student-athletes.
Unsurprisingly, Scandinavia is following this trend, with athletes from the region contributing significantly to the international community of NCAA sports.
Many more student athletes in the US!
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Proportion of Scandinavian student athletes in NCAA Division 1 & 2 in 2021/2022
|
Sports
|
Sweden
|
Norway
|
Europe
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Women's soccer
|
118
|
31
|
37
|
|
Mens soccer
|
145
|
166
|
80
|
|
Womens Tennis
|
59
|
18
|
9
|
|
Mens Tennis
|
75
|
18
|
13
|
|
Womens Swim and Dive
|
33
|
9
|
9
|
|
Mens Swim and Dive
|
33
|
6
|
11
|
|
Women's Track and Field
|
32
|
22
|
13
|
|
Mens Track and Field
|
10
|
5
|
11
|
|
Women's Cross Country
|
8
|
6
|
10
|
|
Men's Cross Country
|
1
|
1
|
7
|
|
Womens Golf
|
83
|
25
|
15
|
|
Mens Golf
|
89
|
23
|
24
|
|
Women's Volleyball
|
6
|
1
|
none
|
|
Mens Volleyball
|
none
|
1
|
1
|
|
Total number of athletes
|
807
|
395
|
257
|
Sweden dominates the number
With 807 athletes, Sweden is far ahead of both Norway and Denmark in representation. This raises the question of what drives this Swedish dominance and what the other two countries can learn from this.
Changing scale for men's sports:
While men’s sports previously accounted for 72% of total participation in 1981-82, it now accounts for only 57% in 2021-22. This suggests an increasing diversity and inclusion in NCAA sports that Scandinavia can take part in and learn from.
