2020 Sport Infoday

The European Commission and the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) hosted the annual Erasmus+ Sport Infoday in Brussels, which enables sport stakeholders from across the continent to gather in a same place and receive all relevant information on the Erasmus + programme, the Sport Chapter, alongside tips and tricks to maximise the chances of one’s project application to be selected for funding.

The Sport Infoday’s 7^th edition demonstrated the ever-growing dynamism of the sport sector in Europe with over 600 participants present. With 2020 being the last year of the current programme, Head of Sector Luciano Di Fonzo reminded participants that since 2014 Erasmus+ Sport has funded over 860 projects with 191 million EUR. The day was opened by Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth- and also responsible for sport; who stated the necessity for Europe to uphold and promote its unique sport model as part of the continent’s cultural heritage. In parallel, the necessity for the sport sector to continue striving for more social equality and more regular physical activity amongst citizens remains a priority. In order to support the continuous work of the sport, Commissioner Gabriel unveiled the 2020 call for sport proposals has been awarded 57 million EUR.

To further support applicants, three parallel workshops were available (Evaluation process; Financial aspects; and Small Collaborative Partnerships) to explain all intricacies of the application and selection processes and answer any questions.

The next Erasmus programme will run from 2021-2027, with a total envelop of 30 billion EUR- just over double of the 2014-2020 programme’s budget! The 2021-27 Sport Chapter is to become:

• more decentralised (through the mobility of sport coaches and staff),
• more international (Sport chapter to be open to Partner Countries),
• and more present (for the first time sport will be covered all three Key Actions- mobility, partnerships, and in the support to policy development and cooperation).