New $40,000 fund supports local event hosting, driving economic and community impact
Local sport organizations looking to launch a new event, or take their existing event to the next level, now have more help with the launch of the Sport Edmonton Event Accelerator Fund, Powered by Edmonton Destination Marketing Hotels (EDMH).
The fund will support a total of six events over the 2026-27 sport season, providing grants of $5,000 (for four existing events) and $10,000 (for two new events), along with added support from Sport Edmonton. Part of that added support will be the Sport Edmonton Partnership Program, pooling event assets to create a single touchpoint for corporate Edmonton to invest in local sport.
Only events created and hosted by Edmonton based organizations are eligible for funding, ensuring events will stay in our community for years to come, bringing repeatable impact to Edmontonians and enabling growth for local organizations.
“Edmonton is a city that knows how to show up for sports. We also have all the ingredients to create world-class, community-led sporting events of our own. We believe the Sport Edmonton Event Accelerator Fund will empower local sport organizations to build experiences that attract athletes and visitors to our city year after year, filling hotel rooms and energizing our communities in a way that goes far beyond a single weekend,” said Chris Yeung, Executive Director of EDMH.
“These events grow our community sports sector, inspire the next generation of athletes, and leave a legacy Edmonton will be proud of for years to come. For our hotel members, this is a practical investment that builds a stronger, steadier pipeline of visitors and keeps occupancy growing even between our city’s marquee events. We couldn’t be more excited to help make that happen alongside Sport Edmonton.”
For Sport Edmonton, the fund is part of the organization’s ongoing work as the City’s civic agency for sport and recreation to connect local organizations and provide added support. Overall, the fund will help provide meaningful value to Sport Edmonton members, while ensuring a community and capacity building lens is applied to events.
“Local sport organizations are critical to bringing vibrancy to our community. This fund will help drive opportunities for existing sport participants, while ensuring organizations are thinking about how they can use their event to drive community engagement, and impact beyond the field of play,” said Evan Daum, Sport Edmonton CEO.
“We’re excited to be partnering with EDMH to bring the power of local sport events to the forefront, providing real value to our members and a new way to connect with corporate partners through the Sport Edmonton Partnership Program. Local sport drives meaningful economic and social impact and we know we’ll have no shortage of quality events to support this season thanks to EDMH’s support.”
Applications for the Sport Edmonton Event Accelerator Fund, Powered by Edmonton Destination Marketing Hotels are now being accepted (application deadline of July 31, 2026).
To apply and learn more about the program, visit SportEdmonton.com/EventAccelerator.