Money from the federal government for sport: chance of 50 million euros

Who slept during the long night of energy price relief?

The government has to be accused of not fully reaching the sport with the 300-euro lump sum.

The sports organizations, especially their umbrella organization DOSB, do not seem to have been wide awake enough to strengthen their attacked base: coaches and supervisors, referees and judges.

Week after week, they cover thousands of kilometers to keep the sport going.

For this, they are asked to pay more and more at the gas station.

But many of them are not relieved, students, pensioners and those who are otherwise not employed.

Even the increase in the kilometer allowance from 30 to 38 cents is not enough for club sports.

It has not been included in the Federal Travel Expenses Act and has no effect in practice.

Ambitious programs of the countries

Now it's about the next chunk.

The Federal Ministry of the Interior has budgeted sixty million as Corona bridging aid for professional sports clubs.

The program expires at the end of March.

The clubs were served well last year and now they have spectators again.

They will probably not claim a good fifty million euros.

The plan is to use this to revive club and mass sport, which has suffered so much from the pandemic and the restrictions that have come with it.

The federal states are actually responsible for this;

practically all of them have launched ambitious programs.

Supporting the new start promised in the coalition agreement is one thing that is to be welcomed.

Presenting coherent ideas to Parliament after two years of the pandemic, or even better: convincing the householders that sport knows how to do something useful with so much money – which will have to be spent this year if it flows.

Ideas of a PR campaign per sport and of vouchers for club memberships still seem to be floating around in disorder.

The Ministry of the Interior expects a concept from the sport, which in turn sees the Ministry as an obligation.

Time is running out.

As early as April 6th, next Wednesday, the budget committee will discuss the individual plans.

After the second reading in Parliament, the final adjustment session is scheduled for May 19th.

In many areas, the sport has not been hit as hard as feared.

The smaller the community, the greater the cohesion in the clubs is the rule of thumb.

The bigger the clubs, on the other hand, the more pronounced the attitude that as a customer you only pay if the service is right.

We hear from the team sports that children between the ages of six and nine are blatantly absent.

Blatantly noticeable, so everyone complains, is the disappearance of those who volunteer in the organization and

.

There is an urgent need for the government and parliament to declare sport in its breadth and social depth to be an object of national interest.

This also means that they support sport and exercise outside of the clubs.

But they should not take the pillars of club sport for granted;

not again.