Cash for Kids Sports Challenge returns for 2026 with thousands of pounds available for local sports groups
Cash for Kids has launched its 2026 Sports Challenge in Edinburgh, The Lothians, Fife & Falkirk, giving grassroots sports groups the opportunity to raise vital funds for their club while creating more opportunities for local children and young people.
Since launching in 2017, the Sports Challenge has helped Cash for Kids distribute more than £7.1 million to grassroots sports groups across the UK, supporting over 265,000 children and young people.
Supported by Mowi Scotland, the fundraising competition is designed to help clubs and organisations remove financial barriers to participation, ensuring more children can enjoy the physical, social and wellbeing benefits of sport.
Applications are now open to sports groups and organisations, all of which will keep every penny they raise, alongside the opportunity to secure a share of thousands of pounds in additional funding.
What’s involved?
From 12th September to 12th October up to 15 grassroots sports groups will compete to raise as much money as possible for their club or organisation, with fundraising support and guidance from Cash for Kids.
Every participating group will keep 100% of the funds they raise, with the top three fundraising groups receiving an additional £5,000, £2,500 or £1,500 in funding.
Other groups who reach the minimum fundraising target will also receive a top-up grant of £500.
Supporting the next generation through sport
Money raised in previous years has supported children and young people in a variety of ways, such as reducing membership and participation costs and providing essential kit or equipment.
Funding has helped improve facilities and create more inclusive sporting environments, expanding opportunities for children who may otherwise miss out.
By taking part, clubs can strengthen their offer, grow participation and help ensure every child has the chance to get involved in sport, regardless of their circumstances.
Proven impact
Last year, The Edinburgh Combat Project was crowned Sports Challenge champion after raising an incredible £29,827 The funding enabled them to improve their facilities, purchase much needed equipment and provide coaches and volunteers with first aid training.
Speaking about their experience, Alice Vakslavova, said: “As a grassroots charity, we are very competitive and, even though we had never heard of the Sports Challenge before, we were ready to get everyone involved, from our trustees and volunteers to the wider local community, and give it our best shot.
The Sports Challenge month tested us in many ways, and at times we were not sure whether our small team could compete with some of the larger organisations taking part. It was therefore a huge surprise, and an incredible achievement for us, to find out that we had won and secured an additional £5,000 in top-up funding.
We were so excited to share the news with our community and, most importantly, with the children who would benefit from the funding. They were very quick to agree that we should buy a PlayStation 5! Unfortunately, to their slight disappointment, that was not quite the plan!
Our charity supports children and young people to access martial arts and, while helping them to join is one challenge, the second biggest challenge for us is retention. Children and young people can often disengage because they do not have the sports equipment they need to take part fully and feel included in their classes.
Thanks to the £5,000 top-up funding, we were able to purchase boxing gloves, MMA gloves, shorts, shin pads and headguards, and create individual festive packages for the children. We surprised them with their new equipment at a small celebration before the Christmas break.
To make the occasion even more special, every junior received a certificate of achievement recognising their consistent and continued engagement with our programme. We also celebrated individual milestones, including the highest class attendance during the year, most improved student and, for some of our young people, stepping into the competition fight ring for the very first time.
The children were absolutely ecstatic with their presents and were already excited and motivated to use their new kit when they returned to training in January. Without the £5,000 top-up funding, we simply would not have been able to make this happen on this scale.
The rest of the money we fundraised throughout the Sports Challenge helped us cover essential operational costs at our facility and make some much-needed improvements. We purchased new training mats and skipping ropes, and even new sinks for the bathrooms! Our coaches and volunteers were also able to undertake an essential First Aid at Work course, which we know is incredibly important, although we hope we never have to put those skills into practice.
The Sports Challenge has given us much more than additional funding. It pushed our own limits and boosted our confidence in what our small team can achieve when we work together. It also showed us how many different activities we can use to fundraise, raise awareness of our cause and bring our community together.
Most importantly, the funding has helped us remove another barrier for children and young people who want to take part in martial arts, helping them stay engaged, feel part of the community and continue benefiting from everything that regular training can offer.”
How to apply
Applications are now open and will close at midnight on Monday 7th September
Groups can register now at Sports Challenge Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife & Falkirk | Cash for Kids Grassroots Sports Funding | Forth 1
For further information, please contact: getintouch@cashforkids.org.uk
