Generous support for Play the Game 2017
Once again, Play the Game’s ambition of raising the democratic standards of world sport is backed by a great number of stakeholders in sport. Generous donations for the conference from both governmental, journalistic and sports organisations show that improving integrity in sport is on the top of the agenda for many.
The largest Dutch contribution to this year’s Play the Game conference comes from the Dutch ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport that has donated €100,000 to the organising of the conference.
“The Play the Game Conference has an added value to promote good governance in sport and to tackle integrity issues that threaten the core values of sport. That is why I would like to contribute financially to the organization of this event,” writes Bart Zijlstra, director of the sports department, in a letter confirming the grant on behalf of the Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport, Edith Schippers.
The City of Eindhoven has also demonstrated commitment and enthusiasm for Play the Game 2017 and has donated €10,000 for the conference, in addition to hosting the Welcome Reception on 26 November at the conference venue, Van der Valk Hotel Eindhoven.
Already in 2016, an important fundament was laid under Play the Game 2017 through a grant from the Erasmus+ programme, financed by the European Commission, for the project “National Sports Governance Observer 2017“. The project enables Play the Game to invite 50 representatives from research, governments and sports organisations in the EU member states and partnering countries to attend the sessions and workshops on good governance in sport during Play the Game 2017.
The Danish parliament is equally supportive of Play the Game. It has granted an extraordinary sum of €100,000 per year in 2015-2018 to support Play the Game’s good governance initiatives, of which this year’s conference enjoys a share of €53,333.
Even though the conference will take place outside of Denmark in 2017, major organisations and institutions in Danish sport have volunteered financial support worth more than €38,000 to the Play the Game 2017 conference this autumn.
The largest single Danish donor is the National Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark with 100,000 Danish kroner (€13,333). Next in line are the Danish FA (DBU), the Danish national elite sports institution Team Danmark, and the Danish Federation for Company Sport, who each add €6,666 to the conference budget. Anti-Doping Denmark supports the conference with €5,333.
“Play the Game 2017 would be impossible to realise only on our own core funding, and we reach out to groups that can only take part if delegate fees are kept at a minimum. Hence we are very grateful that our applications once again have been accepted generously,” Play the Game’s international director Jens Sejer Andersen says.
Due to the contributions from the Danish Union of Journalists and the Association of Danish Sports Journalists worth €4,000 and €3,333, respectively, Play the Game 2017 will again be able to offer a limited number of conference grants to journalists from less privileged countries. The deadline for grant applications is 26 September and you will be able to find more details about the process by clicking here.
In return for their contribution, sponsors are mentioned on Play the Game’s communication platforms such as the website and the conference programme. Some sponsors are also offered programme time to set up their own sessions. All these sessions are clearly branded so participants know who is behind.
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