Data centres accounted for more than 41% of structured cabling installed worldwide in 2025, up from 21% between 2015 and 2018, according to new research from BSRIA.
The Structured Cabling Worldwide 2026 report, covering 34 countries, found the global structured cabling market grew 21% in 2025 to $9.08bn, adding $1.3bn in a single year and building on almost 11% growth in 2024. BSRIA attributed the rise to AI infrastructure investment, with the data centre segment growing 54% over the same period.
Markets including Denmark, Spain, Switzerland, Germany and India recorded strong growth, but the US delivered the strongest performance of any country. Sales there rose 44% year-on-year, and the US accounted for 89% of the total global value increase in 2025.
The report found the US now holds 69% of the global data centre cabling market – 14 times the size of second-placed China. Germany, the UK, Australia and India were named as the next-largest data centre markets.
Hyperscalers were the largest contributor to US growth, though the report noted all data centre segments increased. Some of the US figures reflect products shipped from American hyperscalers into Canada, Latin America and Europe, meaning the headline numbers slightly overstate domestic installation.
The report described the wider market as splitting into two tracks. Data centre work is dominated by large-scale projects, concentrated among a handful of suppliers, while the LAN market – providing connectivity and power to desks, Wi-Fi and security systems in commercial buildings – grew 2% in 2024 and 5% in 2025 as the sector recovered from Covid-19-related supply chain disruption.
Regional LAN performance varied. The Americas hold 45% of the LAN market and grew 9% in 2025, driven by the US and Canada. Asia Pacific contracted by 1.9%, held back by a 7% decline in China linked to a 17% fall in non-residential construction that hit offices and manufacturing.
The report also found that Cat 6A cabling has overtaken Cat 6 in global sales, with material cost rises in the second half of 2025 pushing prices up.
Lone Hansen, manager, IT cabling, BACS and associated technologies at BSRIA, said: “The shape of this market has changed in a short space of time. Data centres are where most of the value growth is, and the US is pulling further ahead because of investment in AI infrastructure across all data centre segments. The LAN side of the market is doing the essential work of connecting offices, powering desks, supporting WLAN and keeping security systems running, and that demand is steady rather than spectacular.”
However, “copper has held up better than people expected”, Hansen added.
The report found that China’s AI data centres are following a different path, with Direct Attach Cables accounting for 90 to 95% of connections there, chosen for their lower cost and shorter lead times.
Structured cabling plays a smaller role in those builds than in the US and other regions, which BSRIA said has commercial implications for suppliers planning their Asia Pacific strategy.
Image credit: Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
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