Canadian employees like to keep up on sports games during work hours, especially TFC fans

There is something about sports, especially supporting one team or another, that brings people together.

It gives them something in common to socialize over, provides a sense of community and unity, and allows for people to escape their daily grind for a little while.

Following sports is such a big part of many people’s lives, that they even check scores, get updates on other happenings, and even watch a game on the company’s dime.

A recent study by The Grueling Truth found that 63% of Canadians admit to following their teams or favourite sports during work hours. On average, the study found employees dedicating 49.8 minutes each week during “work time” to keep updated on results.

Admittedly, I have done it many times – and will continue to do so – as I work remotely. In fact, I will book myself out-of-office if it’s a big match for one of my favourite teams and I’m not the only one, according to the study, as 13% said they would either call in sick or consider doing so to watch a game. Of course, I don’t have to fake illness as my employers know I will make up the time later (or earlier) but I’m lucky that way.

Not everyone is so lucky according to the study, where 1 in 20 respondents indicated they would face consequences for checking scores at work (but likely did so anyways).

But why, even with risk of getting in trouble, would someone check scores and follow sports at work?

Around 60% say it’s about wanting to check in on their favourite team, about 25% say it’s to relieve boredom, 9% indicate it alleviates stress, 6% do it to socialize, and 2% answered that it was for other reasons.

The study also found that Toronto FC fans were the biggest culprits, with 79% of those surveyed indicating they are fans of the Reds and checking on scores during work hours. Second place goes to CF Montreal (75%), which shows that soccer (or Football in Europe) supporters are hardcore about their teams. Meanwhile the Raptors fans came in third at 75%.

While two of the top three teams in terms of fans checking scores at work were from Toronto, it was interesting to see that New Brunswick takes the lead in terms of provinces, as 75% of workers in that Maritimes locale admit to occasionally giving in to this habit.

Alberta and Nova Scotia share the second spot, with a percentage of 70%, with Ontario at 63% and Quebec at 51%.

This survey conducted by The Grueling Truth among 2,127 working Canadians was done in December 2023. Of all respondents, 54% identified as male, 45% as female, and 2% as non-binary. The average age was 33.4 years.

Find out more about this study, its key findings and more results at: https://thegruelingtruth.com/en/ontario/canadian-work-time-sports-fan-habits/

This gallery features graphs from The Grueling Truth‘s study.