The cooperative planning process was shaped across its phases by several facilitators, challenges, and barriers. This study used a mixed-methods approach, including a systematic analysis of documents ( n = 10) and in-depth, semi-structured interviews ( n = 4) with the empirical projects’ scientific members. We analysed four German empirical projects promoting sports and physical activity to identify how the approach was adapted to each project, which phases were considered, and which key performance indicators enhanced (facilitators), exacerbated (barriers), or challenged the process. This approach was extensively applied in German sports and physical activity fields, serving as a mechanism to develop and implement specific measures to change the population’s behaviour.
Participatory-based interventions, using the cooperative planning process, offer the potential to plan new programs that match population group and setting characteristics. Therefore, the demand for more effective physical activity programs is growing. More than half of the global population is not physically active enough. The aim of this study was to map the phases and individual steps of the cooperative planning process, a specific participatory approach frequently used in German sports and physical activity promotion, and to explore facilitators, barriers, and challenges experienced by those leading its implementation in selected projects.