CHICAGO (Sept. 7, 2018) – As part of its mission to make soccer the preeminent sport in the United States, U.S. Soccer announced the Innovate to Grow Fund is available for the second straight year. The Fund, which was launched for the first time in 2017, provides up to three million dollars to help members launch new and innovative programs to stimulate growth amongst their membership.
The goal of the program is to identify and take scalable and transportable ideas related to growing the sport of soccer in the United States and push them forward.
U.S. Soccer members will need to apply to receive funds. There is no limit on the amount a member can request, and the project can be up to three years in length. The application must meet certain criteria, including:
- The program must be new and different from current efforts.
- The program must demonstrate capability to grow participation
- The program must demonstrate potential to scale in other markets.
- The program must align with U.S. Soccer Player Development Initiatives.
The member must also be financially invested in the program.
The application process will be announced in the near future.
Last year, the first round of the initiative, the award winners included: the joint (youth and adult) state associations of Alabama, Tennessee, Colorado, Georgia and Louisiana; the youth state associations of Alaska, Cal North, Illinois, New Mexico, Utah, Washington and Missouri; and the adult state association from Washington.