Valentine’s Day 2026: If Run Clubs Are The New Dating Apps, What’s Next For Romance Tech?

For most of modern history, dating was simple in theory, even if it wasn’t always easy in practice. If you wanted to meet someone, you had to actually go somewhere. You met people through friends, at work, at parties, in pubs, at weddings or in those accidental little moments that only happen in real life – I think we call that a “meet cute” these days, if I’m not mistaken.

If you liked someone, you had to speak to them, and if you wanted to get to know them, you had to spend time with them in person. Attraction wasn’t curated through a carefully crafted profile. It was built through real conversation, shared spaces and a slightly terrifying level of vulnerability. And on top of all this was also just a whole lot of luck – you had to be lucky enough to be in the same place at the same time as someone you would end up connecting with.

And then, the internet arrived, and the whole dynamic shifted.

Suddenly, you didn’t need a chance encounter or a mutual friend. You could meet someone online, you could chat from the comfort of your bedroom and you could even date someone on the other side of the world without ever leaving your sofa. And once dating apps entered the mainstream, romance became something you could browse like a catalogue.

In the beginning, it felt like the future and boy, was it excited. But in 2026, it’s starting to look like the pendulum is swinging back. And it’s happening in what many would describe as a kind of unexpected way.

If the latest rise of run clubs as Gen Z’s newest dating scene is anything to go by, the next era of romance might be less about swiping, and more about showing up.

Enter Run Clubs and the “Analogue Dating” Reset

According to a press release from British running brand Ronhill, nearly three million Gen Zs in the UK now believe that run clubs are the new dating app. For many, this may be a striking claim, but for others, it very much makes sense. Not only do the stats behind the assertion make the trend feel hard to ignore, but for many people, personal expereince very much backs this up.

I, for instance, am a runner – not because I wanted to join a modern run club for dating purposes. I’d like to say that I was into running before that. But what I can say is that the increasing number of run clubs has been pretty mindblowing – and I’m talking about not just in London, but in major cities all over the world. I see them on my local streets and my social media feeds are flooded with run club content.

It’s also worth noting that for any “old school” runners (of which I’m not really one either, but it’s certainly where I started), the idea of a “run club” is not new, in essence. However, back then, they were “running clubs” and they were far more official. And not “were” – they still very much are. I’m still a member of an official running club, but for far more practical reasons – things like the fact that it’s easier to enter races, it allows me to have a permanent racing “license” and more. So, the purpose is kind of different, although there’s no denying the fact that running clubs have always been used as community-based groups, allowing people to make friends, meet people and socialise. They just weren’t only about that.

These days, run clubs, in contrast to running clubs, are all about the social. And according to many, not just the social, but dating.

In fact, Ronhill’s release suggests that nearly a quarter of Gen Z (22%) agree that run clubs have replaced dating apps, while 72% attend fitness groups specifically to meet new people. It also notes that two in five Gen Zs exercise with the intention of meeting others with shared interests, and 46% are open to a “workout first date”.

Even on the apps themselves, the shift is visible.

According to the same release, mentions of “running” in UK Tinder bios doubled between 2023 and 2025, while “parkrun” references rose by 90%.

The takeaway is clear. People aren’t abandoning dating completely, but they’re clearly tired of the same digital cycle. The endless messaging, ghosting and low-effort interactions that rarely lead to anything meaningful have become exhausting and feel, in many ways, kind of empty.

Run clubs, on the other hand, offer something that dating apps can’t replicate – meeting real  people, in real time, with no filters, no curated prompts and no way to hide behind a carefully chosen selfie.

Dating Apps Started to Feel Like Work

When dating apps first became mainstream, they solved a genuine problem. They made dating more accessible by widening people’s social circles, and they created opportunities for those who struggled to meet people organically, whether that was due to busy work lives, location or anxiety.

But over time, the experience started to change.

Dating apps became less like a tool for connection and more like a never-ending marketplace of options. A place where people could be replaced with a swipe, where attention spans shrank and where meaningful connection started to feel oddly transactional. It just felt lazy and without substance.

According to Ronhill’s release, 78% of dating app users now report frequent burnout, that stat alone speaks volumes. When something that’s meant to make romance easier starts exhausting the people using it, something in the model is clearly broken.

The issue isn’t that online dating doesn’t work. Rather, it’s that it’s started to feel like a full-time job, with very little payoff. And if it’s not having positive results or making you feel good, what’s the point?

Gen Z, a generation already overwhelmed by digital noise, it seems, is increasingly craving something different.

Run Clubs Are a Social Hack, Not Just a Fitness Trend

Run clubs are not just about cardio, they’re about community. They represent a return to “old-fashioned” social norms, in many ways.

Unlike a dating app, where you’re expected to perform, sell yourself and keep conversations going with strangers, run clubs are supposed to create natural, low-pressure interaction. You show up, you run, you chat and you see familiar faces week after week.

The Ronhill release highlights that this is partly driven by a desire for authenticity, with 73% of young singles on Tinder reportedly saying they only know they like someone when they can “be themselves”.

It’s hard to “be yourself” when you’re staring at a screen, trying to craft the perfect message to someone you’ve never met. It’s much easier when you’re laughing after a run, grabbing a coffee or bonding over how brutal the last hill was.

As Jon Wild, Brand Manager for Ronhill, puts it, run clubs offer “shared hardship, shared values and a completely unedited first impression”. And whether you’re looking for romance or friendship, that kind of environment is naturally magnetic.

What Does This Mean for Romance Tech and Dating Apps?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t think this necessarily automatically means the end of dating apps.

But, it is a warning sign that the current model is losing cultural momentum, particularly among younger users. If more people start prioritising real-world connection, dating apps will need to evolve fast or risk becoming background noise.

The next generation of romance tech may not be about replacing real life, but enhancing it. And romance tech is going to need to listen and evolve accordingly.

Instead of endless chatting, we may see platforms that focus more on real-world meetups, interest-based communities and offline-first dating experiences – apps that function less like swipe marketplaces and more like social organisers.

Perhaps, things like matchmaking based on shared hobbies, local events, fitness meetups, volunteering groups and even run clubs themselves.

In other words, romance tech might have to stop pretending it can fully digitise chemistry, and instead, build tools that help people get back into physical spaces where chemistry actually happens.

The Future of Dating Might Look More Like 1996 Than 2016

There’s something slightly ironic about all of this, aside from the whole 2026/2016 trend we’ve been seing over the last month or so. For years, the narrative was that dating apps were the future and real-life dating was outdated. But now, it’s looking like the future might actually involve going outside again.

Not because technology failed, but because humans are remembering what connection is supposed to feel like. And maybe that’s the real story this Valentine’s Day.

Dating isn’t disappearing and romance isn’t becoming less digital. Rather, the definition of “modern love” is changing again and many older people from previous generations will most likely be elated by this.

If run clubs are the new dating apps, then romance tech might have to become less about swiping and more about helping people meet in the real world.

Because it turns out the most powerful algorithm might still be proximity, shared experience and a conversation that starts without a screen in the way.