Why Competitive Socialising Is Growing So Fast
There is a reason competitive socialising is on the rise, it is not really about darts, bowling, padel, gaming concepts or immersive entertainment. It is about something much deeper than that. People are craving connection, and there is increasing research to support this.
Not digital connection, REAL connection. The kind that gets harder to find the more our lives revolve around screens, remote work, algorithms and passive consumption. Post-Covid, people became far more aware of how isolated modern life can quietly become without us even noticing it happening.
Venues built around “doing something together” remove a huge amount of the social pressure people often feel in more traditional settings. Sitting across from someone for two hours over drinks can feel intimidating, awkward or draining for a lot of people now, especially after years of reduced social interaction. But when there’s an activity involved, conversation flows differently. The activity becomes the social glue. It gives people something to laugh about, compete around, focus on and share without the pressure of constant direct interaction.
That’s why concepts like darts bars, interactive gaming and competitive socialising venues, immersive experiences and family entertainment centres are growing so quickly. They’re not just selling entertainment. They’re creating environments where people can feel connected IRL in a way that feels natural and low pressure.
I also feel there is a much bigger mental health conversation sitting underneath all of this, even if the industry doesn’t always frame it that way.
We’re living in a time where loneliness, anxiety and digital fatigue are becoming increasingly common, particularly among younger generations. At the same time, Gen Z and millennials are placing far more value on experiences than previous generations ever did. It is not simply because they want novelty or something “Instagrammable”, people are searching for moments that make them feel present again. Moments that pull them away from endless scrolling and passive entertainment and put them back into real-world interaction.
In a strange way, a lot of leisure venues are becoming social wellness spaces without intentionally marketing themselves as that. They’re creating places where people can move, play, compete, laugh and spend time together without the heaviness or structure of formal socialising.
What is equally interesting is how many of these concepts are thriving without alcohol sitting at the centre of the experience. That shift feels significant. For years, drinking culture was one of the main foundations of social life, but consumer behaviour is changing. More people are becoming conscious of the relationship between alcohol and mental health, energy levels, anxiety and overall wellbeing. People still want to go out. They still want atmosphere, connection and shared experiences. They just don’t necessarily want those experiences to revolve entirely around drinking anymore.
The future of leisure is moving beyond entertainment alone. The venues that will continue to grow are the ones that understand that people are ultimately looking for connection, belonging and shared experiences that make them feel something real.
In a world where loneliness is becoming one of the biggest challenges affecting overall wellbeing, that feels like a far more important shift than people realise.
We are in the happiness business, these are exactly the kinds of shifts I love helping leisure and entertainment brands navigate. Understanding why consumer behaviour is changing is becoming just as important as understanding what consumers are buying. The concepts seeing long-term success are often the ones creating genuine emotional connection, not just entertainment. Whether that’s through competitive socialising, immersive experiences, community-driven spaces or more wellness-focused leisure concepts, the industry is evolving far beyond traditional hospitality models.
If you’re developing, launching or repositioning a leisure, entertainment or hospitality concept and want to better understand how changing consumer behaviour is shaping the future of the industry, I’d love to connect.