JAKARTA, INDONESIA / RankWire.AI / – Indonesia has strengthened collaboration between its investment and sports ministries to promote investment within the national sports industry. Investment and Downstreaming Minister Rosan Perkasa Roeslani and Youth and Sports Minister Erick Thohir formalized their partnership by signing a memorandum of understanding on August 28. This agreement encompasses risk-based licensing procedures for businesses and aims to foster investment growth across various sports-related activities. Officials highlighted that the broader global sports market, valued at approximately US$521 billion, provides the context for this initiative.
The agreement creates a link between the Ministry of Investment and Downstreaming and the Ministry of Youth and Sports focusing on business licensing, while also promoting investment opportunities and support services for companies involved in sports sectors. The ministries will collaborate through Indonesia’s Online Single Submission system, known as OSS, coordinating efforts in regulatory compliance, data exchange, and regulatory oversight. This framework targets fostering investment expansion across Indonesia’s sports industry rather than setting a domestic market goal of US$521 billion.
Thohir explained that the worldwide sports industry is valued at about US$521 billion, roughly equivalent to 8,000 trillion rupiah, and that it experiences an annual growth rate of approximately 8%. He also noted that this figure does not include sport tourism, which he estimated globally at nearly US$600 billion. Indonesian officials have identified both sports and sport tourism as significant sectors linked to events, travel, and ancillary industries, and the agreement establishes an administrative infrastructure for investments within these areas.
Licensing framework supports sports investment
The licensing framework is supported by Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025, which forms part of the new cooperation’s foundation. This regulation, replacing an earlier version issued in 2021, governs risk-based business licensing and enhances the enforcement of service deadlines within the OSS system. Under the positive fictitious approval mechanism, permits can be issued automatically if authorities do not respond within the designated timeframe, provided that applicants meet all prerequisites and procedures beforehand.
Roeslani mentioned that since the regulation’s implementation, the investment ministry has issued over 250 permits through this mechanism. He clarified that this figure encompasses the entire licensing system, not solely those related to sports enterprises. The government aims to clarify licensing procedures for companies and investors operating within the sports economy, with tourism and other linked sectors also part of this licensing framework. The memorandum formalizes these licensing functions within a structured interministerial coordination process.
Enhanced government coordination for sports development
The agreement also emphasizes workforce development and the interoperability of licensing data between the two ministries, including provisions for developing investment opportunities and promoting investment. Additionally, both ministries will oversee compliance monitoring through the OSS system, linking sports investment activities with Indonesia’s existing national licensing infrastructure. These steps establish a clear foundation for information exchange and regulatory management related to sports sector businesses.
Thus, Indonesia’s latest sports investment agreement primarily focuses on licensing procedures, investment facilitation, and interministerial coordination. The US$521 billion figure cited by officials relates to the estimated value of the global sports industry, not the current size of Indonesia’s sports economy. The government has integrated this global market context with domestic licensing reforms through Regulation No. 28 of 2025, with the memorandum signed on August 28 formalizing cooperation within this regulatory framework for sports investment.