The budget gym sector increased its dominance in the European fitness market in 2015, according to the European Health & Fitness Market Study 2016.

The report - presented today (6 April) by Karsten Hollasch of Deloitte at the European Health & Fitness Forum (EHFF) in Cologne, Germany - showed that the charge of the low cost sector shows no sign of relenting, with fastest growing fitness operators in 2015 coming largely from the low-cost sector.

The European fitness market was worth €26.7bn in 2015, up from €25.2bn in 2014, representing a 4.9 per cent increase in terms of revenue. Meanwhile, average membership growth in 2015 was 3.9 per cent – 3.4 per cent for the top 10 countries – with the markets in the UK, Germany, Russia and France leading the way.

The presentation showed that 52.4 million Europeans used health clubs in 2015, putting the industry broadly on target to reach EuropeActive’s ambitious goal of growing the sector to reach 80 million members by 2025.

Other key findings from the report included:

• The top five European markets represent two thirds of all revenue in the continent – UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain (ranked biggest to smallest).

• There is a visible correlation between a population’s physical activity and fitness market penetration, although GDP and level of urbanisation also play a part.

• Markets with a higher market share of the top five operators tend to have lower average membership fees, again demonstrating the strength of the low cost sector.

• M&A activity continued to be high, with 19 activities recorded in both 2014 and 2015, compared to just 24 fitness transactions in total from 2011-2013.

• The five leading commercial equipment manufacturers accounted for about 72 per cent of the global market in 2015.

• Technological development is one of the main forces shaping the future of health and fitness industry.

To read in-depth analysis of the study, check out the June 2016 edition of Health Club Management magazine.

Health Club Management is on hand throughout EHFF 2016 and FIBO, live reporting on the latest developments from the events and posting them straight to the Health Club Management website. Head of news Jak Phillips is also live-tweeting from the event, follow him on Twitter by clicking here.