The bar chart compares the sum of adults, in a specific region, which engaged in different organized sports, during 1997 and 2017.
At first glance, the participation for almost all sports, rule out rugby has increased. The popularity of each physical activity in 2017 is approximately equal to that in 1997.
Focusing on individual sports, such as Tennis, Golf and Swimming, we can see a minimal difference in the data between the two years. These three sports where the most popular in 1997, with Tennis having the most engagement with 50000 adults. However, over the next 20 years they failed to amass new players and their numbers remained stagnant. Most notably, the figure for swimmers remained the exact same, at 35000.
Now, taking a look at group sports, we notice some variability between the sports. Although some, such as Basketball, Football and Rugby show a substantial increase in participation, the number of adults, which partake in cricket, has fallen by approximately 20000, making its mark as the least popular sport, a spot which was held by Basketball in 1997. Still, even with the skyrocket in popularity for the 3 aforementioned sports, Tennis holds the position of the most sought after sport in this area.