Capacity Building in the Field of Sport

The Capacity Building in the Field of Sport (ERASMUS-SPORT-2026-CB) is a European Union-funded initiative aimed at enhancing grassroots sport organizations in the Western Balkans and Eastern Neighbourhood countries. This program encourages international cooperation through multilateral partnerships, requiring at least four organizations from three different countries, incorporating both EU Member States and specific eligible third countries in Regions 1 and 2, excluding Belarus.

Eligible applicants include legal entities active in sport, such as grassroots clubs, federations, NGOs, and educational institutions focused on sports. The funding model is based on ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants, with project budgets ranging from EUR 100,000 to EUR 200,000. The total allocation for this call is EUR 2,440,000, with dedicated budgets for Region 1 and Region 2.

Projects must specifically focus on capacity building, promoting social inclusion, and fostering positive values like fair play and gender equality. The designated thematic priorities include skills development for disadvantaged groups, migrant integration, and post-conflict reconciliation.

The application process follows a single-stage submission, with the planned opening on December 10, 2025, and a deadline set for March 5, 2026. Proposals are submitted through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and must demonstrate measurable outcomes and sustainability.

Successful consortia will be expected to provide 20% co-financing to cover project costs, reinforcing local investment. The evaluation timetable includes submission review and grant agreement signing between November and December 2026, with project execution expected to commence after that period.

Overall, this initiative reflects the EU's commitment to using sport as a catalyst for social development and international collaboration, aiming to strengthen civil society in partner regions through shared values and cooperation in sports.

The ERASMUS program is offering a call for proposals for Capacity Building in the Field of Sport, specifically ERASMUS-SPORT-2026-CB. This action falls under the ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants (ERASMUS-LS) and utilizes the ERASMUS Lump Sum Grant [ERASMUS-AG-LS] type of Model Grant Agreement (MGA). This is a forthcoming call with a single-stage deadline model. The planned opening date is December 10, 2025, and the deadline for submission is March 5, 2026, at 17:00 Brussels time.

The scope of the call focuses on Capacity Building projects, which are international cooperation projects based on multilateral partnerships. These partnerships should involve organizations active in the field of sport in both Programme countries and third countries not associated with the Programme, specifically those in Region 1 (Western Balkans) and Region 2 (Neighbourhood East). The primary aim is to support sport activities and policies within these third countries, using sport as a tool to promote values and as an educational means to foster personal and social development, ultimately building more cohesive communities.

The objectives of the action are to: raise the capacity of grassroots sport organizations, encourage the practice of sport and physical activity in third countries not associated to the Programme, promote social inclusion through sport, promote positive values through sport such as fair play, tolerance, and team spirit, and foster cooperation across different regions of the world through joint initiatives.

Proposals should concentrate on specific thematic areas defined at the programming stage. Examples of relevant areas include: promotion of common values, non-discrimination, and gender equality through sport, development of skills through sport to improve the social involvement of disadvantaged groups (e.g., independence, leadership), integration of migrants, and post-conflict reconciliation.

Regarding admissibility conditions, the proposal page limit and layout are detailed in the call document and in Part B of the Application Form, which is available in the Submission System.

Eligible countries include EU Member States, third countries associated with the Programme, and third countries not associated with the Programme in regions 1 and 2, with the exception of Belarus. Region 1 countries are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Montenegro, with a budget of EUR 1,464,000 (IPA III). Region 2 countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and the territory of Ukraine as recognized by international law, with a budget of EUR 976,000 (NDICI). Additional specifications can be found in the call document.

Other eligible conditions, as well as financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria, are described in the call document. The submission and evaluation processes are also detailed in the call document.

The evaluation criteria, scoring, thresholds, and overall evaluation process are thoroughly described in the call document.

The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is as follows: Publication of the call on November 12, 2025, application deadline on March 5, 2026, evaluation period from March to August 2026, information to applicants in August 2026, and signature of the grant agreement between November and December 2026.

The legal and financial setup of the grants is described in the call document.

The call document and annexes include the call document itself, application form templates (Standard application form for ERASMUS BB and LSII, and a Detailed budget table for ERASMUS LSII), guidance documents such as the ERASMUS Programme Guide, Model Grant Agreements (MGA) including the Lump Sum MGA, and additional documents like the ERASMUS+ Work Programme, ERASMUS Regulation 2021/817, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

The total budget for the ERASMUS-SPORT-2026-CB ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants is EUR 2,440,000. The call follows a single-stage submission process.

There are 8 partner search announcements available for viewing and editing. LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics, as well as any user with an active public Person profile.

The submission system is planned to open on the date stated in the topic header.

For support, applicants are advised to carefully read all provisions before preparing their application. For call-related help, contact ERASMUS-SPORT@ec.europa.eu. Additional resources include the Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ for proposal submissions, the IT Helpdesk for technical issues, and the Online Manual for a step-by-step guide through the Portal processes.

In summary, this ERASMUS+ call for Capacity Building in the Field of Sport aims to foster international cooperation through sport-related projects in the Western Balkans and Eastern Neighbourhood regions. It seeks to enhance the capacity of grassroots sports organizations, promote social inclusion and positive values through sport, and encourage physical activity. The call is structured as a lump-sum grant, with a single-stage application process. Applicants need to form multilateral partnerships, focusing on specific thematic areas such as gender equality, skills development for disadvantaged groups, migrant integration, and post-conflict reconciliation. The application process involves adhering to specific guidelines for proposal layout and page limits, and the evaluation process is detailed in the call document. Successful projects will contribute to building more cohesive communities through the power of sport.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are organizations active in the field of sport in Programme and third countries not associated to the Programme in Region 1 (Western Balkans) and Region 2 (Neighbourhood East). This suggests that eligible applicants could include sports clubs, sports federations, educational institutions with sports programs, NGOs focused on sports, and other similar entities. The requirement for multilateral partnerships implies that consortia are expected.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically an ERASMUS Lump Sum Grant (ERASMUS-LS).

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is required, as the projects are based on multilateral partnerships.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States, third countries associated to the Programme, and third countries not associated to the Programme in Region 1 (Western Balkans) and Region 2 (Neighbourhood East), with the exception of Belarus. Region 1 includes Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Montenegro. Region 2 includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and the territory of Ukraine as recognised by international law.

Target Sector: The target sector is sport, with a focus on capacity building, promoting social inclusion, positive values, and cooperation through sport. The thematic areas include promotion of common values, non-discrimination and gender equality through sport; development of skills (through sport) needed to improve the social involvement of disadvantaged groups (e.g. independence, leadership etc.); integration of migrants; and post-conflict reconciliation.

Mentioned Countries: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, Ukraine, EU member states.

Project Stage: The project stage is capacity building, which implies that the projects should be at a stage where they are ready to be implemented and scaled up, rather than being in the early research or idea phase.

Funding Amount: The total budget for the call is EUR 2,440,000. The budget is allocated as follows: EUR 1,464,000 (IPA III) for Region 1 countries and EUR 976,000 (NDICI) for Region 2 countries. The funding is provided as lump sum grants.

Application Type: The application type is an open call, with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of lump sum grants.

Application Stages: The application process consists of a single stage.

Success Rates: The indicative number of grants is not specified, so the success rate cannot be determined from the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly mention a co-funding requirement.

Summary:

This opportunity is an ERASMUS+ call for Capacity Building projects in the field of sport, targeting organizations in EU Member States, third countries associated to the Programme, and specific third countries in the Western Balkans and Eastern Neighbourhood regions (excluding Belarus). The call aims to support sport activities and policies that promote values, social inclusion, and personal development through multilateral partnerships. Projects should focus on thematic areas such as promoting common values, gender equality, skills development for disadvantaged groups, integration of migrants, and post-conflict reconciliation. The funding is provided as lump sum grants, with a total budget of EUR 2,440,000. The application process is a single-stage open call with a deadline of March 5, 2026. Applicants need to form consortia and submit their proposals through the Funding & Tenders Portal. The call encourages capacity building initiatives that leverage sport as a tool for positive social change and international cooperation.