DIGGING DEEP

AUSTRALIANS have donated a record $7.097 million to golf via the Australian Sports Foundation over the 2017-18 financial year – further highlighting the important role the sport has in Australian communities.

The fundraising result for golf was a 65 percent increase on the 2016-17 fundraising total of $4.276m. Overall, the Sports Foundation raised $44.7m for the second successive year and takes total donations to sport over the past four years to nearly $150m.

Golf retained third place on the overall fundraising table – behind Multi-Sports ($12.476m) and Australian Football ($12.265m) – and represents $9.57 per participant (based on data taken from the AusPlay sport sector participation survey).

Australian Sports Foundation Chief Executive, Patrick Walker, said the 2017-18 financial year was highlighted by significant growth in athlete fundraising (up 142 percent); rugby league (up 160 percent); tennis (up 82 percent); golf (up 65 percent); sailing (up 56 percent) and rugby union (up 52 percent).

Walker also said total athlete and club registrations rose by 61 percent, while the number of fundraising projects jumped by 36 percent.

“The $44.7m donated in 2017-18 again illustrates how important donors regard the health, community and social benefits of sports participation, and the Sports Foundation applauds the continued generosity of Australians,” Walker said.

“Golf’s fundraising was again outstanding and the sport has raised $21m for a variety of projects over the past four years,” he added.

Following the establishment of its Charity last month, Walker anticipates the Sports Foundation will raise an additional $25m-$30m a year in donations for charitable sporting projects by 2022.

“The Charity will allow sport, for the first time, to have the opportunity to benefit from distributions from Public and Private Ancillary Funds, which hold many billions of dollars for philanthropic purposes. These funds must be used for charitable projects – for example those that increase activity and improve physical or mental health.

“Donations to the Charity will help those with a social disadvantage to benefit through sport, including multi-cultural, diversity and female-inclusion sport programs, and can also be used to enhance community sports facilities in regional and rural communities,” he said.

The Sports Foundation is listed in the Income Tax Assessment Act as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) and is the only body in Australian that can provide tax-deductions for donations of $2 or more to sports projects.

For fundraising opportunities or to support grassroots sporting communities, go to asf.org.au or call (02) 6214 7868.