European City of Sport 2026

European City of Sport 2026

Belfast has been named a European City of Sport for 2026.

This follows our bid submission, together with our leisure partners, GLL, to ACES – Worldwide Capitals and Cities of Sport Federation.

They award this accolade each year, recognising the best cities, towns and regions across Europe who are celebrating sport and encouraging physical activity.

Our bid reflects ACES’ manifesto pledges – enjoyment in exercise, willingness to achieve, sense of community, learning to play and improvement in health – and focuses on five key themes:

• investment made into sport in Belfast over the last ten years
• support provided to elite athletes
• contribution of our leisure centre staff, local clubs, coaches and volunteers
• ensuring everyone feels welcome and included, and
• how sport is delivering better health outcomes for our residents.

Try-It grants

As part of our celebration of being awarded European City of Sport 2026, we are launching a Small Grants Programme to support local sports clubs and community organisations in delivering activities that encourage participation in sport and physical activity in Belfast.

Grants of up to £1,000 are available to constituted sports clubs and community organisations. Within the total grant award, up to £250 may be used for the purchase of essential sports equipment required to deliver the proposed activity.

Eligibility criteria

You must:

• be a fully constituted sports club or community organisation.
• confirm that they have an appropriate governing document/constitution in place.
• deliver activities that contribute to the celebration of Belfast as European City of Sport 2026.
• ensure all funded activity is completed and all monitoring and reporting requirements are submitted by 31 December 2026.

More information

• Maximum grant available: £1,000
• Up to £250 of the award may be allocated towards essential equipment costs.
• Funding is available on a first-come, first-served basis and applications will be assessed in the order they are received.
• The programme will close once all available funding has been allocated.

We encourage you to apply as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

How to apply

For an application and guidance notes, email [email protected].

Completed applications should also be emailed to [email protected].

If you need any further information regarding the programme or application process, get in touch.

We look forward to supporting clubs and organisations in creating exciting opportunities that celebrate Belfast’s year as European City of Sport 2026.

What is happening?

2026 will see lots of great sports events delivered across the city, as well as more work to:

• promote use of our leisure centres
• showcase the variety of sports available in our city
• celebrate the contribution of sports clubs and athletes, and
• highlight how you can get involved.

Get involved

Everyone can be part of this special year.

• Take part in European City of Sport events.
• Join your local leisure centre and enjoy a huge range of activities, with membership options to suit everyone.
• Support your local sports club as a player, supporter or volunteer.
• Celebrate the people who make sport in our city happen by taking part in our Belfast Sports Awards.
• Look out for dedicated programmes and initiatives from us and our partners to help everyone get more active.

Sports clubs and governing bodies

If your club is funded through our Support for Sport scheme, our Sports Development team will contact you directly with information on making your events part of our European City of Sport programme.

We are also working with sports governing bodies to raise awareness of the year and use it as a tool to get more people playing different types of sport. Look out for our branding at events throughout the city during 2026.

Clubs can also sign up to help us with try-it events throughout the year and join our mailing list to keep updated on events, initiatives and funding opportunities.

Make sure to tag your sports events with #BelfastCityofSport too, if sharing content on your social media channels.