Sports 4 Life offers community funding and seeks to effect sustainable improvement to the overall health and development of girls in these communities through grant making, leadership training and capacity-building efforts.
Donor Name: Women’s Sports Foundation
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 05/02/2025
Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
Sports 4 Life, cofounded by the Women’s Sports Foundation and ESPN in 2014, was created based on the knowledge that while sports participation offers tremendous life-long benefits – from improved physical health and self-esteem, to better grades in school and enhanced leadership skills – young girls of color are disproportionately excluded.
The program seeks to increase the participation and retention of Black, African-American, Hispanic and/or Native American girls, inclusive of American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Funding Information
Together, the Women’s Sports Foundation and its partners will award a minimum of $400,000 in 2025.
Uses of Fund
Funding can be used for coaching, curriculum, equipment, uniforms, transportation, facility rental, tournaments and/or team-building activities, all while fostering the Sports 4 Life benefits: leadership, self-esteem, confidence and perseverance.
Eligibility Criteria
In general, the applicant should be a non-profit school, parks and recreation department, non-profit organization or an amateur sports league. Eligible applicants must demonstrate that their program meets the following criteria:
- Serves predominately Black, African-American, Hispanic and/or Native American girls (representing more than 70% of the enrolled program participants)
- Has the ability to deliver structured, developmental sports programming to girls ages 11 to 18 through experienced and committed leadership
- Has the ability to provide ongoing funding to implement sports programming after the life of the funding has expired
- Complies with all of the applicable Federal Civil Rights laws, including the requirements pertaining to developing and submitting an Equal Employment Opportunity Plan (EEOP), reporting Findings of Discrimination, and providing language services to Limited English Proficiency (LEP) persons
- Sports 4 Life Partners that have received prior funding should demonstrate how funding has resulted in the growth of girls participating in sports. Any subsequent funding is contingent upon receipt of a satisfactory final and/or mid-term report.
Grant Exclusion
Sports 4 Life Partners that have received three years of consecutive funding will not be invited to apply until 2026.
For more information, visit WSF.
