The Sports Sub-committee of the City of Helsinki's Culture and Leisure Committee decided on the allocation of the 2026 sports grant funding at its meeting on Tuesday 27 January 2026. In December, the Culture and Leisure Committee decided to allocate an additional EUR 137,000 to grants when compared to the previous year. The sub-committee allocated the largest share of the funds to operating grants and grants for other associations promoting sport and physical activity (EUR 2,187,000) and to facility usage grants (EUR 5,371,000).
The total amount allocated to both the grant for promoting safer club activities and the grant to support regional sports activities will be EUR 50,000 more than in the previous year. In 2026, grants for promoting safer club activities will total a maximum of EUR 200,000, and grants to support regional sports activities will total EUR 250,000.
Other types of grants available in 2026 include the orienteering map grant, start grant, event grant, clearing grant and price change transition grant. Furthermore, the Sports Sub-committee will allocate EUR 700,000 from state inheritance funds to promote sport and physical activity for the elderly.
Grant eligibility of school facilities ends on 1 June 2026
In December, the Executive Director of the Culture and Leisure Division decided on changes to the price list for Sports Services’ facilities and school gyms. With the new prices coming into force at the beginning of June, the prices for using school gyms will become more affordable than before. From 1 June 2026 onwards, the City of Helsinki will no longer award grants for the use of its school gyms.
Transition grant mitigates the effects of price changes
The Sports Sub-committee decided on a price change transition grant to support sports associations whose facility usage costs will increase as a result of the changes to the price list and the discontinuation of grants for the use of school facilities. The grant will be awarded based on how much the changes increase the facility usage costs. So the transition grant will curb cost increases in 2026.
Associations based in Helsinki that had bookings at the facilities of the Sports Services Unit or the sports facilities of the City of Helsinki’s schools in 2025 are eligible to apply for the grant. The grant’s application period is 1 May–26 June 2026.
Sports grant application periods
- Event grant 8 December 2025–6 December 2026
- Start grant 1 January–6 December 2026
- Operating and facility usage grants 9 January–15 February 2026
- Grant for other associations promoting sport and physical activity 9 January–15 February 2026
- Orienteering map grant 9 January–15 February 2026
- Grant for the promotion of sport and physical activity for the elderly 9 March–2 April 2026 at 16.00
- Grant for promoting safer club activities 9 March–5 April 2026
- Grant to support regional sports activities 9 March–5 April 2026
- Allocation of the 2026 sports grant funding (in Finnish) (Link leads to external service)
- Criteria for awarding the 2026 price change transition grant (in Finnish) (Link leads to external service)
- Price list of the Culture and Leisure Division for 2026 (in Finnish) (Link leads to external service)
- Sports grants web pages(Link leads to external service)
