As romantic as the famous quote from baseball movie Field of Dreams is, there is a lot more to starting a new community sports club than simply ‘if you build it, they will come’. But, with a sensible and measured approach, the rewards can be great. You just have to avoid the pitfalls.
Sport England is at the forefront of helping you take the right steps, emphasising that anyone with enough enthusiasm can set up a new club, or a satellite of a bigger club. “You may be a Sport Maker or take regular exercise with a group of friends. You might want to start taking part in regular fixtures and play against other teams or apply for funding," one Sport England spokesman explains.
The first step is an obvious one: know your market!
A point emphasised by Sport England:
All great sporting institutions started somewhere, and when it comes down to it, many began after a social chat. Lincoln Rowing Club is no exception, except that one of the people behind the club had never even rowed before. The man in question is John Dyer, a gas engineer in the historic city of Lincoln. It’s a city with a notable and ancient history, but up until 2006, no rowing club…despite a river just perfect for the sport.