ENGSO meets with European Commissioner Micallef to advocate for Grassroots Sport
Brussels, July 2, 2025 — Today, ENGSO Vice President Filipa Godinho, ExCom Member and Chair of the EU Advisory Committee Theo Neyenhuis and Secretary General Sara Massini met with Glenn Micallef, European Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport, to reaffirm ENGSO’s commitment to ensuring grassroots sport remains at the heart of European sport policy.
The meeting served to present ENGSO’s work while also advocating for grassroots sport to be a priority on the Commissioner’s agenda in the years ahead. As the leading voice for grassroots sport at the EU level, ENGSO stressed the importance of ensuring this vital foundation of the European sport ecosystem is not overlooked.
The dialogue also addressed the upcoming Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2028–2034, with a specific focus on Erasmus+ programme. ENGSO stressed the need for the next program to be accessible for organised grassroots sport entities. Given that EU funding is essential for sport organisations to deliver meaningful societal projects, ENGSO called for continued and accessible support that allows sport to contribute to Europe’s preparedness, social inclusion, and long-term resilience.
Erasmus+ is a well-established and successful programme that should ideally be preserved in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF). However, as Ms Massini pointed out, if the structure were to change, it would be crucial to ensure that a clear percentage is allocated to grassroots sport and youth. Without such safeguards, the competition for funding could become too intense, particularly from larger European players, and we risk undermining support for the foundation of the European sport model.
Special attention was given to the topic of volunteering in grassroots sport. Mr. Neyenhuis and Ms. Godinho highlighted both the unique characteristics and the evolving challenges faced by volunteers at the grassroots level—challenges that differ significantly from those in professional sport. Another key point raised was the importance of recognizing the skills and competencies gained through sport volunteering, particularly among young people. A dedicated initiative to promote formal recognition of volunteering experience was proposed as essential to strengthening the broader sports movement.
Finally, a reference was made in the direction of ensuring the inclusion of grassroots sport in a dialogue with the institutions regarding sport policy and finding a way to provide a voice for this dialogue could happen.