Aussie, Aussie, Aussie: Olympic fever stops the nation
Sports mad Aussies are glued to their screens with millions doing everything from skipping sleep to wagging work to watch the Olympic games, according to new research by Finder.
A Finder survey of 1,041 respondents revealed almost 1 in 4 (23%) Olympic enthusiasts have woken up early or stayed up late to watch the world's top athletes compete.
That's an estimated 4.8 million Aussies who have sacrificed sleep to watch Australia climb the medal tally.
More than 1 in 10 (11%) are watching their fellow Australians compete while they work – that's almost 2.3 million employees glued to their devices while 'on the clock'.
Some are ditching work altogether. The research found 3% – equivalent to more than 600,000 people – have skipped work to watch the Olympic live streams.
The survey revealed 2% of Aussies have bet money on the Olympics – that's an estimated 418,000 people having a punt on the games.
Gen Z were most likely to have wagged work (7%) to watch the Australian Olympic team compete, and a further 20% watched on their phone while they work.
Tim Bennett, personal finance expert at Finder, said Aussies don't want to miss a moment of the games.
"Aussies love their national sport and don't want to miss a minute of the action.
"With so many world class sports events happening right now in Paris, Aussies can't get enough."
Bennett said the Olympics holds a special place in the hearts of Australians.
"It brings people together in a way few other events do and I think we all need something to feel uplifted about following a really difficult few years struggling with cost of living pressures."
Bennett urged Aussies to use annual leave instead of burning the candle at both ends.
"Turning up to work on limited sleep can lead to careless mistakes and even make you more susceptible to winter germs," he said.
Australians in NSW (41%) were the most likely to have changed their routine to prioritise watching the Olympics, followed by VIC (36%).
| Have you done/will you do any of the following to watch the 2024 Olympics? | |
|---|---|
| Wake up early in the morning or stay up late | 23% |
| Watch on my phone / other device while I work | 11% |
| Watch at a venue / live site | 6% |
| Take out a paid subscription that gives me access | 5% |
| Skip work | 3% |
| Gamble on the Olympics | 2% |
| None of the above | 64% |
Methodology
- Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker is a monthly recurring nationally representative survey of more than 60,000 respondents.
- Figures in this release are based on 1,041 respondents from August 2024.
- The Consumer Sentiment Tracker is owned by Finder and operated by Qualtrics, an SAP company.
- The survey has been running monthly since May 2019.