40 Fundraising Ideas for Sports Teams

Balancing your budget is an important part of running a sports team, but we understand that most administrators and coaches do not start a team because they are passionate about finance. 

You love the game and the chance to foster the potential of young athletes. Fundraising is a great way to have fun with your team and involve your community—all while giving your budget a boost. 

Explore our fundraising ideas for sports teams.

How to Fundraise for a Sports Team

Many youth sports teams work with limited budgets, and parents can only contribute so much. Fundraising gives you more financial flexibility and can pay for important team purchases like uniforms and other gear. 

All successful fundraisers start with a solid plan, whether it is a tried and true favorite or a fresh new strategy. If you are not sure where to start, pick an idea that features your sport or your team’s other interests. 

Fundraising also builds teamwork and camaraderie, so be sure to include your athletes as you plan and execute your events.

Fundraising Ideas for Baseball Teams

1. Wiffle Ball Tournament 

Wiffle ball is a great variation of a baseball game that is easy for people of all ages and skill levels to play. Invite families and community members out for a wiffle ball tournament night. 

You can charge for entry into the games, and you can also provide dinner or concessions for people who want to come watch. You may want to offer winners a chance to play against your athletes in the final round.

2. National Anthem Sponsorship 

Someone singing the national anthem before a baseball game is an American tradition. Let a community organization pick the singer in exchange for a sponsorship. A local choir or theater group may love to offer their skills and their support to your team, and then everyone gets to enjoy a performance before the game. 

You could also make it a raffle, where community members submit themselves or a friend to be the lucky performer before the season-opening game.

3. Autographed Ball Auction 

Whether signed by your team members or a professional star, an autographed ball is a great item to auction off to fans. Host a silent auction with the ball as one of the items up for bid, or enlist your coach to become the auctioneer for a night. The ball goes to the highest bidder, and the proceeds go to support your team.

4. Trivia Competition

Sports enthusiasts, especially dedicated baseball fans, typically know a lot of trivia. Baseball is one of the oldest professional sports in the United States, so it has a rich background of facts and data to pull from. 

Host a trivia night to showcase this history and raise money. You can charge an entry fee for each participant and let them team up to make winning trivia teams.

5. Clinic for Younger Athletes 

Baseball players cannot stay on a team forever. In youth sports, they often graduate to the next class in only a year or two. You can raise money and foster new talent with clinics for younger athletes. Kids can sign up for a Saturday intensive camp or even a week-long after-school program to learn basic baseball skills from more experienced players. 

Fundraising Ideas for Basketball Teams

6. March Madness Bracket

Lean into a classic basketball tradition for your fundraiser with a March Madness bracket. Many basketball fans in your community likely already look for brackets to enter each year. If you are the one to offer them a fun group to play with, you can charge entry fees that support your team. 

To earn a little more money, try some variations on traditional bracket betting. For example, you can let players switch out teams at later stages in the season for an additional fee.

7. (Slam) Dunk the Coach 

Incorporating a beloved coach is always an excellent way to fundraise. One popular way teams do this is by subjecting the coach to something silly or unpleasant, like a dunk tank. 

You can have this be the main event after an important game, where people pay a fee to try to dunk the coach. You could also have this activity as part of a larger event or evening with other games, concessions, and activities to spend money on. 

8. Courtside Seats Raffle 

Who gets the best seat at a basketball game? Usually, it is a prime sponsor or lucky season ticket holder. If you do not already have people in those seats for each game, raffle them off to earn money for the team. Depending on your team’s needs, you could raffle them off as season tickets or pick a different winner for each game. 

9. Hoop-A-Thon 

A hoop-a-thon is a classic fundraising technique for basketball teams. Players get pledges from friends and family, who promise to donate money for each shot the player can make. During the challenge, players get a set time limit to make as many successful shots as possible. It is a fun way to showcase your individual players’ skills while raising money to support the whole team.

10. Karaoke Night

Many youth players have more than one hobby. If your players love getting into the zone with music or enjoy band practice in the off-season, a basketball karaoke night is a fun way to bring the two passions together. Charge admission fees for community participants or host a duets auction to let supporters sing with your players.

Fundraising Ideas for Football Teams

11. Soccer Game

Put your players to the test and have them play football—no, the other football. Host a fundraising soccer game where your team tries out a new sport. Have your star quarterback be the goalie, or your tight end act as a forward goal scorer. 

You can arrange to play with another football team or challenge your local soccer team to a match. Charge for admission, and enjoy all the fun with your community members cheering your team on.

12. Tailgate Party  

Tailgating is a classic part of football games. What better way to bring people together to support your team? Charge a fee for a hot dog and drink combo to raise funds. 

You could also incorporate a cook-off, where community members pay to enter a contest for the best side dish. Offer winners a prize, like sideline tickets to an upcoming game.

13. Fan Apparel

Even at the youth league level, football teams can have intensely dedicated fans who love to show their team spirit. Many uniform suppliers allow you to order fan apparel in addition to your team gear. You can create hats, t-shirts, or fan jerseys with your colors and logos. Proceeds from the merchandise can go to supporting your team. 

14. Team Calendars

Team calendars are a common fundraising tactic for sports teams. They are an easy item to produce, and they offer families and fans a convenient way to support your team. Players can wear themed outfits or pose with themed props. Of course, for the months of football season, the team can show off their uniforms. 

You can include game dates on the calendar as well to remind and encourage supporters to show up for each one.

15. Exercise Class

Let people sign up to take an exercise class with your football players. Ask participants to make a donation in exchange for entry into the class. 

You can have players run football drills with participants, if community members want a taste of a football practice routine. If you would rather expose your team to something new, you can have them participate in a group exercise class like Zumba, Pilates, or SoulCycle. 

Fundraising Ideas for Volleyball Teams

16. Ping Pong Tournament

For a little spin on netted games, try something where volleying is actually against the rules. Yep, no volleying is allowed in table tennis. This can make for a fun challenge for volleyball players and fans alike.

To raise money for your team, host a ping pong tournament. You can charge entry fees and spectator fees. With round-robin play, games are quick and fun for everyone involved.

17. Skills Lessons

Anyone can learn the basic skills of volleyball. Raise money for your team by hosting skills lessons for anyone who wants to learn. For a participation fee, community members can learn how to serve, spike, and bump from your players. It will give first-timers a taste of how the sport works and a new-found appreciation for how hard your players work. 

18. Movie Night

Sell tickets for a movie night and raise more funds with concessions like soda and popcorn. You can pick a themed sports movie or show one you know the whole community will enjoy. Local libraries or high schools often have media licenses to show favorite films, and they can be a great place to host your event.

19. Volley-A-Thon

Adapt the idea of a basketball hoop-a-thon for your volleyball team. Set a time for players to make as many serves or passes as they can. Donors can pledge money for each successful one a player completes in the allotted time. As your team earns money from the plays, onlookers can get a taste of how much fun it will be to watch them during games.

20. Themed Bingo Night

If you are hosting a bingo night or game night for your team, make it themed. Decorations, snacks with pun-inspired names, and team uniforms can make the night memorable and fun. Charge for each bingo card to raise funds, and have a player or coach call out the numbers as people fill out their bingo cards.

Fundraising Ideas for Cross-Country Teams

21. Runner Step Challenge

Cross-country runners are known for their endurance over long distances. How long do you think they can go if given a week to count steps? Have each team member gather pledges from their friends and family for every 1,000 steps they can walk (or run). 

22. Community Step Challenge 

Cross-country runners are not the only ones who can get lots of steps in. Involve community members in a step challenge. Charge an entry fee to enter the contest. Then decide on how to crown winners. Maybe the person with the most steps wins, or maybe anyone who accumulates more steps than your star team members gets a prize. You can make it fun with various participant brackets or additional challenges.

23. Community Trail Hike 

If your community has beautiful mountains or other trails nearby, why not take advantage of the environment? Plan a community hike, where participants can donate to your team in exchange for a guided experience on a trail.

You can even organize multiple groups so like-minded hikers can stay together. Let the serious trailblazers go quickly, while those more inclined to birdwatch can go slower as they take in the surroundings.

24. Park Clean Up

For runners who love the outdoors, parks and public trails are favorite places to form a route. Encourage your community to give back in more ways than one with an organized clean-up or park project. 

Ask for team donations from participants, then work together to complete a service project in a local area. Your city resources or park directors can help you identify the best places to contribute. 

Fundraising Ideas for Track and Field Teams

25. 5K Run

A race is a traditional fundraising tactic for all sorts of organizations, from sports teams to charities. That is because it works! It is an excellent way to bring in money through entry fees and donations. It also offers an opportunity to showcase your team, with your logo on the race bibs or your team members running the race. 

26. Fun Run

An alternative spin on a 5K is a fun run. These typically have shorter distances or more relaxed participation, with some people walking or joining in later on the course. You can make a fun run more exciting in other ways, with a theme, costumes, or music. Encourage people to come with their families and neighbors to support your team.

27. Sprint Challenge

For the more serious competitors in your community, host a sprint challenge. You can use traditional track and field events or create your own silly challenges, like running in high heels or across a sandbox. Collect entry fees from participants to raise funds for your track team.

28. Field Day 

Not every person will be up for trying a javelin throw, but many people in your community will love the chance to play other field day games. Host a day of fun with obstacle courses, three-legged races, and tug-of-war challenges. Allow participants to buy tickets, which they can use to enter each event. 

29. Pool Party 

Before the cross country season starts in the fall, host a pre-season pool party or day of water games to fundraise during the summer. Many community recreation centers will allow you to reserve their pool space for an event for a fee, and they will often let you hire one of their lifeguards to keep an eye on everything.

30. Sponsored Football Game 

Yes, we have an idea for your track and field team that is about football. Some football players participate in other sports in the off-season to stay in shape, like track. Leverage that relationship and collaborate with the football team.

Ask them to host a sponsored game, where some of the proceeds from ticket sales go toward supporting the track team. People can support two of their favorite teams at the same time. 

Fundraising Ideas for Any Sports Team

Many fundraising ideas can work for any sport. Try out some of these new or classic ideas with your team: 

31. Themed Raffle Baskets: Put items related to your sports into bundles that fans can bid on to win.

32. Seat or Parking Raffle: For die-hard fans who come to every game, auction off the best seats or parking spots at your home games. 

33. Restaurant Fundraiser: Partner with a local restaurant to hold a fundraiser night, during which a portion of each sale will go to your team. 

34. Social Media Takeover: Work with local businesses to take over their social media profiles for a day. Players can post pictures or videos about the team and ask for donations. 

35. Rent-a-Player Auction: Auction off services from your players so community members can have their lawns mowed or gardens weeded.

36. Bake Sale: Host a classic bake sale, with proceeds from the cupcakes and cookies going to your organization.

37. Concession Stand Round-Up Option: If you already offer concessions at games, offer a round-up option for fans to donate their extra change to the team.

38. Car Wash: Have your players wash cars in the school parking lot in exchange for a team donation.

39. Golf Tournament: Organize a community golf tournament where participants donate their entry fee to your team. 

40. Registration Donations: Make it easy to give an extra donation. Give parents the option to add more money when they pay their registration fees.

Other Team Logistics with gearUP

Fundraising sets you up for financial success. We are here to help as you put other pieces into place for your team, like uniform ordering. Our easy process keeps gear costs affordable and saves you time so you can focus on other team needs. 

An account representative walks you through the whole process: selecting apparel, designing uniforms, and setting up a team shop. When it comes time to order uniforms, athletes or parents place their order themselves, and we ship everything directly to them in two weeks or less. It is a simple process with support from us every step of the way.

Hear what coaches love about gearUP and get started with us today.

The information provided on this blog is for general informational purposes only. While we strive to keep the content accurate and up-to-date, we make no representations or warranties regarding the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information. Please contact our team for personalized advice regarding your youth sports uniform needs.