- Government’s £40m increase for sport in 2026 warmly welcomed by Scottish sports governing bodies (SGBs)
- Outcome follows SGBs’ successful Running on Empty campaign which highlighted the severe financial impact on governing bodies as a result of standstill funding over last five years
- SGBs welcome plans for a ‘Summer of Sport’ as a way of improving access to sport for children across Scotland
Sports governing bodies in Scotland (SGBs) have begun discussions about how to get much needed cash to their organisations as quickly as possible after welcoming the Scottish Government’s announcement of a financial boost for sport.
In last week’s Budget, Cabinet Secretary for Finance Shona Robison revealed a total uplift of £40m for sports funding in 2026. Around £18m of that will go to sportscotland with a focus on supporting sports governing bodies (SGBs) and their day-to-day operational needs.
The announcement comes in the wake of the SGBs’ powerful Running on Empty campaign highlighting how sports in Scotland were struggling to operate amid increasing financial pressures and standstill funding decisions over the last five years.
In 2021, the Scottish Government pledged to double annual funding to £100m per year by 2026 but had yet to increase sport’s annual budget during the current Parliament.
Running On Empty, supported by more than 30 sports, shone a strong light on the risks created by the lack of funding especially around the valuable work done by governing bodies at grassroots, community and elite levels.
Doc McKelvey, chief executive of Scottish Gymnastics and Chair of the SGB CEO/COO Forum said: “This uplift is very welcome news. The amount is significant and testament to the hard work done recently by all the governing bodies who are part of the SGB Forum to demonstrate the wide value of their work and sport in general to the Scottish Government. We also want to recognise the important part played by many other partners, including sportscotland itself, in helping us get to this positive outcome.
“In a number of our discussions with the Scottish Government, we made it clear we understood the pressures they had faced, and in turn they acknowledged the challenges we had faced.
“It is welcome to see their positive reaction to our approach where forum members gave them detailed thoughts on areas of greatest need and impact for additional funding.”
He added that they had now begun detailed discussions on how the funding will be delivered, and the hope is to be able to give sports bodies some much-needed breathing space after “running on empty” for so long.
A survey last year of 30 Scottish sports organisations – including Scottish Disability Sport – initiated by the SGB CEO/COO Forum, found the standstill budget had led to the vast majority having to cut costs, reduce programmes and in some cases lose staff to be able to keep going. They also said the cuts had led to sport becoming less inclusive and less able to help achieve desired public health outcomes.
The total payroll costs of those SGBs with the greatest reliance on public funding have grown by over £7m in the past four years. Over the same period, sportscotland has only been able to support an increased investment of £1.4m due to funding constraints.
Summer of Sport
The Government also announced plans to spend £20m on promoting a “Summer of Sport” which will give children free access to sport.
The full details remain to be shared but SGBs say Glasgow 2026, the Tour de France Grand Depart in 2027 and Euro 2028 are great opportunities to invest further in sport as a way of improving public health, supporting communities, inspiring participation in sport and showcasing Scotland on the global stage but that all sports need to be involved.
Judith McCleary, chief executive of JudoScotland and deputy chair of the SGB CEO/COO Forum said: “The power of sport is phenomenal; whilst we have recently experienced the feelgood factor that the success of the Scottish Men’s Football team has had on a nation, sport changes lives in a multitude of ways through engagement.
“We know the physical benefits and mental health & wellbeing benefits that sport contributes to, but it also leads to so much more – increased levels of confidence, resilience, teamwork and problem solving, and most importantly, a happier and healthier nation.
“It’s great to see this further commitment to sport which plays such an important part in many
public health and community programmes.”