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The Akademischer Seglerverein zu Greifswald (Greifswald Academic Sailing Club) operates two somewhat older yachts for its youngsters, two GDR quarter-tonne Hiddensee boats. "We are currently renovating these two boats extensively," says board member Moritz Schröder, "20 students are coming together, tinkering, sanding, painting - so that we can explore the Baltic Sea again in the new season." But there was a lack of money. Due to the forced break caused by the coronavirus, the projects on the boats are piling up. "We are nowhere near being able to procure all the necessary materials and tools from our own resources," says Schröder. In fact, a new club boat would be needed "if students still want to sail with us in 15 years' time".
This is not an isolated case; many clubs and sailing initiatives are in a similar situation. The paradox is that both public and private money is available. But how to access it?
There are numerous funding pots up and down the country. But hardly anyone has an overview of who grants how much financial support for what and when. Ideally, there would be real funding guides in the sailing scene, for example at the German Sailing Association (DSV). However, these do not yet exist. We therefore bring light into the darkness below.
Subsidies from the federal government
In Germany, grassroots sport is the responsibility of the federal states; the federal government is only responsible for elite sport and the framework conditions. It therefore generally provides funding in accordance with the subsidiarity principle, which means that all other funding options must be exhausted first. Money from Berlin usually only flows as a supplement. The DSV therefore refers to the state sports associations and the sailing associations of the states.
Nevertheless, there can be money from the federal government, explains DSV spokeswoman Christiane Perlewitz - for youth work, for inclusion or in the area of environmental protection, for example for the energy-efficient refurbishment of sailing centres. The funding for "youth education centres", for example, is actually intended for youth hostels, but a grant can also be applied for from the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth for ships. Provided that the operator of the ship is a recognised provider of independent child and youth welfare services and the project is of nationwide importance.
Otherwise, the federal government does spend a lot of money on sailing boats - but these are usually traditional and museum ships such as the "Peking" in Hamburg or the "Gorch Fock I" in Stralsund.
Subsidies from the federal states
Now it gets a bit complicated, because 16 federal states also have 16 different funding regulations in case of doubt. And sometimes the sailing association is responsible, but usually the respective state sports association. In addition, there are different funding pots with different contacts everywhere.
In Schleswig-Holstein, for example, you can apply to the state sports association for funding for investment measures, such as the remodelling of clubhouses, but also for participation in supra-regional championships. In addition, ten million euros are available here in a fund that promotes new approaches to accessibility in sport. There is also the "Innovation Fund" in the north, which supports projects with up to 5,000 euros without the need for an additional personal contribution.
Lower Saxony also has funding for "innovative projects" in youth work, from which you can receive up to 2,000 euros. And anyone organising German, World or European Championships can apply for a grant of 770 euros per championship in Schleswig-Holstein. For very large sporting events, of which the state has declared its intention to organise more than before, there is even up to 250,000 euros.
In and for Schleswig-Holstein, there is also the free donation platform of the state's investment bank. Its "Wir bewegen.SH" project helps to realise charitable projects in Schleswig-Holstein through crowdfunding. In this way, the "Peter von Danzig" of the Academic Sailing Club in Kiel received almost 3,000 euros for a new inflatable boat before the 55-metre sea cruiser set off for the Caribbean in the summer. The "Meer bewegen" association, where people with and without disabilities sail together every week in Groß Wittensee, was delighted to receive 2,000 euros.
All or nothing: funding is only available if the donation target is reached
The all-or-nothing principle always applies here: money only flows if the donation target is reached within the specified period. Around 1.5 million euros have been paid out so far thanks to the platform, and 525 projects have been successful - that corresponds to a rate of 76 per cent.
Regional banks also provide funding for sailing elsewhere: in Hamburg, for example, there is not only a long-distance cruiser racer at the time-honoured Hamburgischer Verein Seefahrt, which bears the name of the local savings bank. The bank also sponsors projects under the motto "Good for Hamburg". And together with management consultants KPMG and Mercedes-Benz, it finances the annual Hamburg Business Regatta on the Alster. Hamburger Sparkasse, together with the City of Hamburg, also co-funded the barrier-free conversion of the jetty at the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein.
There are a number of possible grants for Hamburg's young sailors alone. These include a material cost subsidy for items already purchased: 2,500 euros were granted for a new training dinghy worth 20,000 euros. The purchase of club boats is also subsidised - grants or loans of up to 5,000 euros are available. The individual city districts have special funds at their disposal. There is also the Alexander Otto Sports Foundation, which promotes talent but has also paid for a dinghy for the "Houses of Youth" in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. And until 2021, Commerzbank and the German Olympic Sports Confederation awarded the "Grünes Band" (Green Ribbon) with a grant of 5,000 euros for the development of young athletes in clubs.
Various subsidies can be combined
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is not lagging behind. There are a total of 15 guidelines that support sports projects, clubs as well as associations and individual athletes. Pro rata funding or one-off amounts are possible. Funding is available for training courses, youth work, talent and popular sport. Funding is also available for construction measures, the purchase of "major sports equipment" costing at least 5,000 euros and even educational staff.
For the refit of the 22-metre-long wheelchair sailing boat "Wappen von Ueckermünde", for example, the state spent around 255,000 euros last year. Also good to know: Various grants can be combined with each other. At the Güstrow Sailing Club, the state, together with the town and the EU, financed the renovation of the wooden boat shed for around 30 boats, with construction costs totalling 63,000 euros. The club has also successfully managed the participation of several sailors in the World Championships and the purchase of two Lasers for young sailors thanks to a skilful combination of various grants from the state, private sponsors and the Volks- und Raiffeisenbank community foundation.
Lottery money is also awarded in the federal states. For example, the Bingo environmental lottery, which has been running for 25 years, allocates 25 per cent of the ticket price to support environmental projects in northern Germany. This source also sometimes provides money for projects on traditional sailing ships, for example, as long as their operators can credibly demonstrate that ecology and marine conservation play a role in their project.
Funding opportunities for cities and municipalities
In addition to the federal states, the local authorities - in the city states the districts - are also responsible for sport. They can be considered as donors, for example, when it comes to youth exchanges with partner cities. Sometimes the mayors also have a personal budget from which they can support projects that are close to their hearts. It helps to have a good relationship with the person in office.
As in many other cities and countries, Kiel has had a community foundation for 20 years now. The idea: residents endow or donate funds to enable charitable projects with a lasting impact and to strengthen the city's sense of community. In 2021, for example, the Schüler Segeln association received around 3,700 euros to repaint its boats and carry out various repairs.
Funding from the European Union
If you want funding from the EU, you have to think beyond national borders. Funding is only provided if more than one member state is involved. The Erasmus programme has been in place since 2014. Small cooperation partnerships are funded with 30,000 or 60,000 euros if at least two organisations from two programme countries are involved and at least one sports club is involved. Larger projects with at least three organisations from three EU countries can be funded with up to 400,000 euros.
The money is used to support voluntary work in sport, social integration and equal opportunities or to "promote participation in sport and physical activity".
Non-profit sporting events can benefit if the participants come from at least twelve EU countries: Up to 500,000 euros are available. However, applying to the Erasmus programme, for example, is very time-consuming. This is generally not feasible for smaller clubs, and even larger ones are sometimes reluctant to do so.
There is no separate EU funding programme for the renovation or construction of sports facilities. However, as in Güstrow, the EU Structural Funds can be considered as a source of funding. These aim to reduce differences between EU regions in order to strengthen the cohesion of the community.
The European Regional Development Fund or the Rural Development Fund are available for this purpose. However, sport is usually not explicitly mentioned. As a result, other points of contact usually have to be sought in order to make it eligible for funding. For example, because projects can also be categorised under "urban development" or "tourism" or they serve to "improve the quality of life in rural areas". The prerequisite is that measures are implemented with a partner from another EU country. The sports facilities must therefore be usable across borders, for example in Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark.
Sometimes creativity is required. For example, declaring the new clubhouse as a contribution to promoting urban development!
The Sportout project, which is funded by the European Commission and supports programmes that take place outdoors, is fairly new. Clubs can apply to the German Olympic Sports Confederation with a pilot project. Each funded idea receives between 10,000 and 50,000 euros.
Funding via foundations
There are around 25,000 foundations nationwide, and the number is growing by around three per cent every year - 863 new ones were added in 2021 alone. The vast majority of them pursue exclusively charitable purposes, and some have been doing so for centuries. Many foundations promote youth work or cultural causes, but also the integration of the needy or people with disabilities. Others are anchored locally. Sport is rarely the purpose of a foundation, so as a sailor you have to look very carefully at where you can apply for financial support.
If you want to acquire funding from companies in the region, you should endeavour to make personal contacts wherever possible
"We have five foundations that have been with us for years," says Sven Jürgensen, who has long been involved in funding inclusive sailing projects, both at the North German Regatta Association (NRV) and the "Wir sind wir" association. The foundations contribute four- and five-figure sums to the costs, and the funding is usually obtained through cold calling. In the second or third year, it is then easier to raise funds again, says Jürgensen. "We prepared and presented our foundation projects very professionally. That is very important, as is the sustainability of a project. It requires a certain level of commitment, you don't just do it on the side," he warns. Nevertheless, Jürgensen does not see himself as a professional fundraiser.
The Schleswig-Holstein Sailing Association even has its own foundation, the Horst-Schmidt Youth Foundation. It was established in 1988 in memory of the former chairman. However, its endowment capital only amounts to around 130,000 euros.
The Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation is one of the few large foundations in Germany besides the well-known Aktion Mensch that is open to sailing in principle. In 2021 alone, it approved around 2.5 million euros in funding. It does not sponsor sport, but concentrates on promoting young talent, primarily in the Ruhr region. However, it also operates the sailing yacht "Germania VI". Alfried Krupp had it built in 1963 as the world's first yacht made entirely of welded aluminium, according to plans by Sparkman & Stevens. Young people are trained in regatta and ocean sailing on her.
The Nordland Sailing Fellowship Foundation, which was set up by doctors, also operates its own ship, the Northland 70 "Stefanie of Hammah". She enables disadvantaged people in particular to sail on the high seas. Thanks to the foundation's funding, the trips are free of charge for the participants.
One prominent foundation is the Hamburg Maritime Foundation, which has been supporting historic ships and harbour facilities in the Hanseatic city since 2001, such as the four-masted barque "Peking" mentioned earlier. Other cities in the north also have such foundations, such as Flensburg or Lübeck, where the Possehl Foundation promotes "all that is good and beautiful" in the city, including shipping.
Sonja Endres, fundraiser at the Kiel Youth Sailing Association, recommends "always making personal contact before applying to a foundation for funding". A preferably prominent advocate or dignitary also increases the chances of success. Endres: "The donors want to be sure that their money is well invested." In addition to youth work on ships, Endres explains that the restoration of boats is also sometimes supported - in some cases, however, only if they are recognised as cultural monuments. With her commitment, she wants to save the currently ailing traditional sailing ship "Zuversicht". The project has a good chance of success. Her association, a recognised independent youth welfare organisation, has already been able to raise over 500,000 euros in foundation funding and donations over the past two years.
And who sponsored the Greifswald Academic Sailing Club? "We looked into a number of options," explains club board member Moritz Schröder, "including with the AStA." After all, the AStA had granted the opportunity to support the student section of the ASV Greifswald with monetary funds.
With regard to the statements made by Moritz Schröder, board member of the student section of the ASV in Greifswald, to the YACHT editorial team, its chairman Cornell Pommerencke emphasises the following correction:
"The student department's budget was only adjusted in 2021 and funds for materials and tools are definitely available. There is simply no question of a lack of financial support to keep the boats seaworthy. With regard to a new club boat, there has now been a reserve account since 2021 and of course the student department is developing ideas for financing a new boat, which is also one of our tasks to maintain student training and everything that goes with it. However, all ideas in this regard are long-term. With our two Hiddensees, we currently have very solid boats that are ideal for training."
Pommerencke writes in response to the statement in the caption "The club's coffers are chronically empty": "This does not correspond to the funding practice at ASV Greifswald. We have the promotion of student sailing as a statutory objective and also spend considerable funds from the annual membership fees of all association members on this."
How the DSV promotes
Questions for Hanna Hell, Head of the Youth Sports Department at the DSV
YACHT: Mrs Hell, how does the DSV support young sailors financially?
Hanna Hell:We have youth funding for training programmes that our member clubs, class associations and national associations can apply to us for. The aim of this funding is to prepare young sailors for regional and international regattas. The projects should be as cross-club as possible and expand the existing training programme. This is a grant for the use of licensed coaches. A measure can be funded with a maximum of 5,000 euros and up to 75 per cent of the costs. For example, we pay 180 euros per day for a trainer with an A licence.
And what if a club only needs a new boat for the next generation?
Unfortunately, the DSV's youth sailing organisation is unable to provide clubs with financial support.
What specific measures does the DSV support?
Last year, for example, a training camp for 25 kids in the Open Skiff, 420 and Optimist in Saxony. There was also a training week in the Opti and Ilca with 28 children and young people including coaches and carers in Brandenburg. Or a sailing camp centred around the Peenemünde Dinghy Cup. In addition, we offer a free taster sailing package to attract new children with our "Sailing on site" campaign.
Tips for volunteer fundraisers
- Under stiftungssuche.de is a comprehensive online navigation aid for the German foundation system. The basic version is free of charge. However, if you want to use the full search, you have to take out a paid subscription. The database can be used to check which foundation is suitable for your own project. It is good if sport is listed under the foundation's purpose, and sailing is even better.
- Many state funding programmes in particular require a personal contribution. However, this can also be provided in the form of personal contributions.
- Observe deadlines! In particular, anyone applying for state funding must expect a longer lead time before a decision is made on an application.
- Networking is very important: if you want funding, you have to come into personal contact with the decision-makers in politics and business. If you do good lobbying work, you also have a good chance of getting funding.
- No less important is good, long-term communication. Sponsors and donors want to be involved and regularly informed. For example, via press articles, newsletters, blogs or social media posts - and not just before, but also during and after the completion of a project or event.
- Co-operation helps. Together with other organisations or projects, you can often present yourself more competently and the work can also be spread across more shoulders. A joint presence may make it easier to convince potential sponsors of the merits of a project.
- Approach companies in a targeted manner; quite a few have imposed a social obligation on themselves. It is best to contact companies that are already active locally and with whom contacts already exist. Direct, personal contact is the best way to win them over. If the sums involved are comparatively low, well below five figures, it is definitely worth considering smaller companies as potential donors. Especially if advertising space can be offered in return, for example on boat hulls or sails.
