Ontario Sport Hosting Program 2024-2025 (Canada)

Sport events are important occasions to celebrate athletic performance and build community spirit. Ontario has proven it is an attractive venue for hosting high-profile national and international sport events, helping to create a culture that values sport and contributes to athlete development. Hosting national and international amateur sport events offers Ontario and its communities the opportunity to welcome visitors, showcase the province and its communities to a national and international audience and support the province’s sport, recreation and physical activity culture.

Hosting sport events also increases tourism, creates jobs, enhances public infrastructure and increases economic development. Supporting sport events will ensure Ontario remains an attractive destination for sport hosting and provides opportunities for local communities to build their capacity to host future events.

The Sport Hosting Program will provide project-based funding to help applicants deliver major sport events in Ontario.

Objectives

• The objectives of the program are to:
  • create legacies that support sport at the provincial, regional and local level
  • provide economic benefits through increased levels of tourism, expenditures and improved public infrastructure
  • foster a culture of sport and physical activity in communities by creating role models and enhancing community spirit and involvement in sports
  • increase opportunities for Ontario athletes to compete and participate in events in Ontario
  • seek new avenues to further build and develop the sport capacity of the province by providing additional ways to develop and train coaches, officials and volunteers
  • create a culture of sport that engages all Ontarians.

Funding Information

• The Ministry reserves the right to fund programs that best align with government priorities. Funding ceilings:
  • Stream 1 and 2:
    • National Sport Hosting events are eligible up to $100,000
    • International Sport Hosting events are eligible up to $1,000,000
  • Stream 3:
    • National Sport Hosting events are eligible up to $20,000
    • International Sport Hosting events are eligible up to $75,000
  • Please Note: Requests to support multi-sport events or events over $1,000,000 are dealt with through a separate process.

Eligible Events

• For the purposes of the Sport Hosting Program, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture Sport defines a Sport Event as follows:
  • Events for athletes identified as part of the high-performance and athlete competition pathway plans for the sport.
  • Where the event start date falls within two years of the application date, you must wait for the appropriate application intake date if the event is taking place more than two years away.
  • National events must be:
    • sanctioned by the National Sport Organization
    • include representation from no less than six provinces/territories including Ontario (a country may replace a province) or the National Championship for a specific sport, in a specific age group as confirmed by the National Sport Organization.Ontario must be represented in these Championships.
  • International events must be:
    • sanctioned by the International Federation, as per the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee and/or Panamerican Sport Association
    • includes representation from no less than two countries, including Canada and one country from outside of North America. They will provide an exemption to events for Canadian National Teams as confirmed by the National Sport Organization funded by Sport Canada.

Ineligible Events

• Professional sport events.
• Events where the Government of Ontario is being asked to assume or underwrite any contingent or other liability such as deficit or revenue and rights fee guarantees.
• Events that are charity in nature including activity that has a solicitation of present or future donations of cash or non-cash gifts, or the sale of goods or services to raise funds, whether explicit or implied.

Eligibility Criteria

• To apply for this program, you must:
  • be a legal entity and have been in existence for one year or longer as of the application date
  • not in default of the terms and conditions of any grant or loan agreement with any ministry or agency of the Government of Ontario (for example, Ontario Trillium Foundation)
  • not self-endorse your own application for the program
  • be an eligible applicant under one of the three application streams for the program
    • Stream 1: Provincial or National Sport Organizations
      • Provincial Sport/Multi-Sport Organizations recognized under Ontario’s Provincial Sport Recognition Policy
      • National Sport Organizations funded by Sport Canada
    • Stream 2: event host organizations
      • non-profit organizations (including universities and colleges)
      • Ontario municipalities
      • Indigenous organizations, First Nation, Metis or Inuit communities
    • Stream 3: emerging sports
      • non-profit organizations (including universities and colleges)
      • Ontario municipalities
      • Indigenous organizations, First Nation, Metis or Inuit communities

Eligibility Requirements

• To be eligible for funding, the sport event must meet the following eligibility requirements. The sport event must:
  • Take place in the Province of Ontario.
  • Be open to the public at large to spectate without membership in a club or group.
  • Occur at most once a year.

For more information, visit Government of Ontario.