Future skills in sport industry

Abstract

The sport industry is undergoing rapid transformation driven by digitalisation, automation, and the spread of artificial intelligence. These shifts are reshaping workforce demands and raising questions about the adequacy of existing competency models. This article applies a foresight-oriented methodology, adapting international skills anticipation practices to the specificities of sport. The analysis relies primarily on grey literature, including industry foresight reports and benchmarks findings against the European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations (ESCO) framework and a recent systematic review of sport management competencies. Results show strong convergence between established competencies—such as leadership, communication, adaptability, and ethical commitment—and emerging requirements for digital, data, and AI-related skills. At the same time, critical gaps are evident: cybersecurity, digital security, and advanced digital skills (e.g., immersive media, AI governance). These competencies are insufficiently reflected in current frameworks despite their growing importance. The study concludes that curricula and training pathways in sport must integrate both technical and human-centred competencies. Flexible formats such as micro-credentials can serve to strengthen the missing skills.Šport kot gospodarska panoga doživlja hitro preobrazbo, ki jo poganjajo digitalizacija, avtomatizacija in širjenje umetne inteligence. Ti premiki preoblikujejo zahteve na trgu dela in odpirajo vprašanja o ustreznosti obstoječih kompetenčnih modelov. Članek uporablja metodologijo predvidevanj potreb po znanjih in veščinah (ang. skills anticipation) in pri tem prilagaja posebnostim športne industrije. Analiza temelji na pregledu sive literature, kot so poročila o strateških predvidevanjih in svetovalna poročila, ter rezultate primerja z evropskim ogrodjem znanj, veščin, kompetenc in poklicev (ESCO) in nedavnim sistematičnim pregledom kompetenc na področju športnega managementa. Rezultati kažejo na dopolnjevanje tradicionalnih kompetenc kot so vodenje, komunikacija, prilagodljivost in etična zavezanost z novimi zahtevami po digitalnih, podatkovnih in  povezanih kompetencah. Hkrati pa se kažejo pomembne vrzeli: kibernetska varnost, digitalna varnost ter napredne digitalne veščine (npr. imerzivne tehnologije, upravljanje umetne inteligence). Ugotavljamo, da morajo izobraževalni programi in usposabljanja v športu združevati tehnične in k človeku usmerjene kompetence. Prilagodljive oblike izobraževanja in usposabljanja, kot so mikrodokazila pa se naj dodatno osredotočijo na potrebne specialne veščine in kompetence, ki so bila prepoznane kot nezadostno zastopane