Australian community sport research findings have painted a worrying picture for the future of community sporting organisations, with nearly one in four sporting clubs considering closure.
Rising costs, falling revenue, and declining community participation have been cited as key factors pushing many community sporting clubs to the brink of collapse.
The latest report from the Australian Sports Foundation (ASF) ‘Clubs under Pressure’ highlights the strain experienced by our community sporting clubs struggling to survive.
Speaking with GC&M News, ASF CEO, Patrick Walker said the findings were grim, as sporting clubs continued to struggle financially and the situation was much worse than initially realised. He said it was imperative to shine a light on the problem in order to raise awareness and seek support.
“I do think it’s a dire situation. We saw a loss of community sport during lock-down and the feedback from our clubs was bad then, however it is substantially worse now. These latest results have been surprising. Our clubs have suffered an accumulation of blows over the last few years and they are finding it very hard. The cost-of-living crisis and the level of exhaustion for our volunteers in community sports clubs cannot be ignored,” Mr Walker said.
Mr Walker said he hoped the report would help provide a platform to instigate change and investigate the issue. To read the report or to begin fundraising for your organisation visit asf.org.au/