Why MANY Sports Foundations RARELY Become Financially Independent
Sport doesn’t lack commitment.
It lacks structures that allow commitment to last.
Across community sport, we see extraordinary energy, dedication and impact delivered through foundations and trusts. Every day, organisations are changing lives, strengthening communities and extending the reach of sport.
Yet we also see the same pattern repeated again and again: organisations doing important work, year after year, without ever achieving real financial independence.
This isn’t a failure of leadership or ambition.
It’s a structural problem.
Never let the small print become the large print
Most sports foundations are created in response to opportunity — typically grant funding, charitable status, or the desire to protect social purpose.
In the early years, this works. Funding flows. Programmes grow. Impact increases.
But over time, reliance on short-term funding becomes embedded. Income planning begins to mirror funding cycles. Strategy bends around eligibility criteria — those familiar conversations about adapting programmes to fit the next opportunity.
Teams spend more time sustaining delivery than shaping the future.
What begins as momentum slowly becomes fragility — felt by CEOs, senior teams, trustees and, ultimately, the communities foundations exist to serve.
When success becomes a constraint
Ironically, many foundations struggle because they are good at what they do.
Strong delivery attracts funding. Funding reinforces existing models. And before long, success becomes tied to repetition rather than evolution.
The strategic question shifts from:
What should we build?
to
How do we keep this going?
At that point, financial independence becomes harder — not easier — to achieve. Reliance replaces choice.
The structural issue beneath the surface
In our experience, the challenge is rarely a lack of ideas or opportunity. More often, it is:
Foundations created without a long-term income model
Governance designed for compliance, not growth — allowing the small print to become the large print
Blurred relationships between governing bodies and foundations
Assets and commercial opportunities left unexplored
Strategy driven by funding availability rather than purpose
These are design issues, not delivery issues.
Independence is designed, not discovered
Financial independence doesn’t arrive by accident. It is the result of intentional choices made early — and revisited often.
That means:
Being clear about the role of grants (and their limits)
Designing foundations to access multiple income sources
Building governance that supports confident decision-making
Creating space to think beyond the next funding round
Treating assets, partnerships and place as part of the solution
Above all, it means accepting that sustainability is a strategic discipline, not an outcome.
A different way forward
There is good news.
The foundations that endure tend to share a common mindset. They are less focused on chasing every opportunity and more focused on building the right structure. They prioritise clarity over complexity. They see funding as an engine — not a fixer.
Most importantly, they give themselves permission — and the confidence — to plan in years, not months.
Sport deserves organisations built with that same long-term intent.
Never let the small print become the large print.
TFG Sports works with foundations, clubs and governing bodies to design structures, income and governance that support lasting impact.