May 18, 2026 ISPO launches €1M foundation to fund outdoor impact

The world’s leading sports and outdoor trade fair creates an independent foundation to channel lasting positive change across the globe.

Founded by ISPO, the world’s leading sports and outdoor trade fair, the ISPO Impact Foundation was unveiled on May 18, 2025, alongside details of the €1 million global grant fund it will distribute annually. The independent foundation will harness the power of outdoor recreation and sport as a force for good, in pursuit of a healthier planet and more active, inclusive communities.

ISPO Impact Foundation channels funding into environment and community

Through ISPO’s annual donation, the Foundation will channel funding into initiatives across the globe that protect and restore the planet’s natural environments, while also building stronger, more active communities. It is a statement of intent from a trade fair that has long championed the outdoor and sports sectors, while recognizing that those sectors have both the responsibility and the unique ability to drive real-world change.

“ISPO has always been more than a trade fair,” says Mike Seaman, Group CEO of Raccoon Media Group.

“It is a platform that brings together the people who care most deeply about sport, the outdoors, and the natural world. Creating the ISPO Impact Foundation felt like the natural next step: a way to turn that passion into lasting, practical change.”

Seaman adds that full independence was always central to the Foundation’s design.

“The decisions about where this money goes, and the projects it supports, belong entirely to the trustees, the advisory council and the communities they serve, which is exactly as it should be.”

Andrew Denton, Chair of the Trustees and CEO of the UK’s Outdoor Industries Association, describes the Foundation as a vehicle for putting long-held industry values into practice.

“Healthy natural environments and widespread participation in outdoor recreation and sport are fundamental to the future of our sectors, as well as to the health of our planet and the communities within it,” he says, and continues:

“The ISPO Impact Foundation represents a powerful opportunity to put that belief into action, internationally and at scale, year after year. We are grateful to ISPO and Raccoon Media Group for their vision and generosity in making this possible, and we take the responsibility of stewarding this fund very seriously.”

Grant fund open to non-profits worldwide from June 1

The Foundation will accept project applications from non-profit organizations around the world from June 1 to 30. A wide range of grants will be available, designed to ensure that no project with genuine impact is too small, or too creative, to be considered. Micro grants of €2,000 will support grassroots local clubs, groups and teams, while multi-year grants of up to €100,000 will be available for larger, more established organizations with the potential for significant, and potentially global, impact.

“The potential of this Fund to catalyze lasting change, for our planet and for the health of the communities that depend on it, is genuinely extraordinary,” says Tanya Kenrick, General Manager of the ISPO Impact Foundation, and concludes:

“We are building something that will grow in impact every single year, and the Trustees, the Advisory Council and I are tremendously excited to begin partnering with the innovative, passionate organizations that will help shape what this Foundation becomes.”