Suomisport, a service developed by the Finnish Olympic Committee, turns ten this year. The service was originally built to support national sport federations and other member organisations of the Olympic Committee in selling licences, playing passes and insurance. Today, it is a register of more than one million Finnish sport and physical activity participants and an online store with nearly 600,000 purchase transactions.
More than 1,300 sports clubs use this secure and modern service to automate everyday tasks.
– If someone pulled the plug on Suomisport, a lot of sport would come to a halt – at least for a moment, sums up Carita Riutta from the Finnish Olympic Committee.
Lessons learned over ten years
The service’s growth and scale have required determined work and change. Significant shifts in ways of working have been needed both from users of the service and from the team developing it. The learning curve has been steep.
– Looking at Suomisport’s growth, we have to admit that we ourselves have learned a lot, says Riutta, referring to the changes in practices that new digital services inevitably bring.
1. Users first
One principle has guided Suomisport’s development: the service must work smoothly for participants and guardians as well as for the people working in clubs and federations. This has been supported by the Sportti account, which identifies each user through a Sportti ID. This helps prevent duplicate accounts and keeps information accurate.
– We receive excellent feedback from both participants and club users that information in Suomisport is in order, and there’s no need to wonder whether an account or contact detail is correct, Riutta says with satisfaction.
The user-first approach also shows in the fact that Suomisport has been developed with mobile use in mind from the very beginning. The Suomisport app works smoothly in everyday life, and mobile payments already account for nearly 30% of all payments made through the service. Users praise both the ease of use and the speed and friendliness of customer support.
– We definitely want to ensure that the mobile app continues to work well in the future.
2. Suomisport cannot solve everything on its own
Suomisport receives a wide range of development requests. Over time, some of these needs become new features in the service, but Suomisport cannot solve everything on its own.
– Suomisport cannot serve as the competition management system for every sport, because the needs of different disciplines vary so much, Riutta explains.
– Continuous development is a given for us. There are expectations directed at our service and at the Olympic Committee as a whole, and as a team we have learned to put those expectations into words and manage them, Riutta continues.
To respond to these needs, Suomisport has developed different interfaces, and through them the service is connected to around 60 other systems. This enables flexible and diverse use of Suomisport across different sports and federations.
– Expanding interfaces and bringing in additional services as part of the Suomisport whole is one of our future goals, Riutta says.
3. Data empowers decision-making in sports organisations
A significant amount of data on sport and physical activity in Finland has accumulated in Suomisport. This data – owned by the sport community – can be used in many different ways. One example is the first SporttiData report published in spring 2025. In addition to Suomisport, the report draws on data sources from several sports as well as materials from Statistics Finland, the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare and LIPAS data on sports facilities.
– The report provides basic information on participation across different sports, multi-sport participation and various phenomena. But I feel it is only scratching the surface of what can be achieved with data, Riutta explains.
The SporttiData report includes a broad set of indicators based on licensed participation as well as an impact analysis tool for sport and physical activity. The tool can be used to explore correlations between, for example, the availability of sports facilities and different health and wellbeing indicators.
Having data is valuable, but the Olympic Committee is currently considering how this information can be refined to support leadership and development work.
In addition to the overall report, Suomisport produces sport-specific reports for national sport federations. Riutta encourages federations to make versatile use of data as a foundation for their strategic work. When key information on participation across age groups and regions is available, strategies, actions and metrics can be built on a strong base. Suomisport provides a solid evidence base for strategic work.
Beyond federations, Riutta sees that data can also support decision-making in municipalities and their sports departments. Although municipalities have not been Suomisport’s primary target group, they are an important partner for many sports and clubs.
– Municipalities are the biggest supporter for many sports and clubs, Riutta reminds.
Looking ahead: commercial growth and data become even stronger
The Olympic Committee continuously reviews Suomisport’s future and how the service can keep pace with the rapid development of digital services. Riutta highlights both development needs and opportunities for broader, more effective use of Suomisport.
– The sports community needs stronger competence and resources for using data, so that evidence-based information can truly be leveraged for the benefit of the entire community. In addition, federations and clubs would benefit from describing and packaging their activities more clearly, so they can also present more concrete needs regarding how Suomisport could support them.
Riutta is not afraid to talk about commercial aspects in sport and physical activity.
– We need to be able to create products within the service. That strengthens the Suomisport whole and brings new revenue sources to stakeholders. A solid financial foundation is built when costs can be covered and the funding base becomes stronger.
Even when planning for the future, Suomisport remains committed to its original core idea: the service must be easy for users, and payments must flow reliably, smoothly and as automatically as possible to the club or federation.
Finally, Riutta wants to thank everyone who has been part of the ten-year journey.
– I’m happy and proud that the work of everyone involved along the way has left a real impact on the Finnish sports community. In a service that continues to evolve, there is no finish line in sight – but every step takes Suomisport forward each day for the benefit of the entire sports community.