Ask almost any club secretary in adult grassroots football what keeps them up at night, and the answer rarely has anything to do with results. It’s the budget. New research is now putting hard numbers behind what clubs across the UK have been feeling for years.

The Numbers Behind the Squeeze

According to the FORZA State of Grassroots Football Report 2025, almost three-quarters of UK clubs say they don’t have enough funding to sustain their activities. That’s not a small minority struggling in isolation. It’s the majority of grassroots football in this country, quietly operating on budgets that don’t stretch far enough.

The same report found that 81% of clubs have seen their costs rise by at least 5%. Pitch hire, referee fees, kit replacement, and travel costs all add up fast. For a lot of adult Sunday league teams, the gap between what players pay in subs and what the club actually needs to operate is widening every season.

This isn’t a new problem, but it’s getting sharper. Inflation has hit every part of running a club — from the price of a new set of bibs to the cost of hiring a pitch for a Sunday morning. Committees that used to break even are increasingly having to ask players for more, cut corners, or actively fundraise just to keep the lights on.

Where the Money Actually Goes

It’s worth spelling out exactly what adult grassroots clubs are paying for, because the list is longer than most outsiders realise. Pitch hire alone can run into thousands of pounds a season for a club fielding multiple teams. Referee fees are a fixed cost every single week, non-negotiable and unavoidable if a match is going to be properly officiated.

Then there’s kit. Shirts, shorts, socks, training gear — all of it wears out and needs replacing on a cycle that doesn’t slow down just because a club’s budget is tight. Add in travel costs for away fixtures, first aid equipment, and increasingly, defibrillators and safety kit that clubs are being encouraged, sometimes required, to carry, and the picture becomes clear. Running even a modest adult grassroots club is a genuine financial operation, not just a hobby.

Where Help Actually Exists

The good news is that funding support does exist, even if it doesn’t always reach the clubs that need it most. The Football Foundation continues to fund facility improvements across England, from full 3G pitch installations down to smaller equipment grants. A recent example in Telford saw a grant of almost £765,000 go toward a new 3G pitch, complete with floodlighting and improved changing rooms, specifically to meet rising demand from local grassroots clubs.

In Wales, the Cymru Football Foundation has been running its Pitch Advisory Service alongside the Grounds Management Association, helping clubs make smarter use of the funding they do secure. Fishguard Sports AFC in Pembrokeshire is a good example. The club initially applied for a grant simply to buy a new mower. A proper pitch assessment revealed that different equipment entirely would deliver far greater long-term impact. The club ended up investing a £24,000 grant into a tailored set of attachments and new goalposts, transforming not just their pitch but the sustainability of the club’s maintenance going forward.

Smaller, faster funding routes exist too. The Grassroots Fund, powered by the Utilita Football Rebooted movement, offers no-strings-attached support specifically aimed at clubs, leagues, and volunteers who need a leg-up rather than a full facility overhaul. It’s designed to move quickly, without the bureaucracy that can put smaller clubs off applying for bigger grants.

What Clubs Are Doing to Close the Gap Themselves

Beyond formal grants, more clubs are turning to structured fundraising to cover the shortfall. Simple, low-effort campaigns are increasingly popular precisely because committees don’t have the time or energy for anything complicated. One notable example saw a youth club raise £1,800 in a single seven-day campaign using a “Spot the Ball” style competition, supporting well over 200 players with minimal admin burden on volunteers.

Match day tournaments remain a reliable earner too. Clubs can charge entry fees to visiting teams, then generate additional income on the day through car parking, food and drink stalls, raffles, and matchday programmes with paid advertising space. None of it solves the underlying funding gap on its own, but combined with formal grants, it’s helping some clubs stay afloat where others are struggling.

What This Means If You Run or Support a Club

If your club is feeling this squeeze, you’re far from alone — you’re part of a genuine majority. The FORZA data confirms that this isn’t a case of poor management at individual clubs. It’s a structural funding gap across UK grassroots football as a whole, driven by rising costs that show no sign of slowing down.

The practical takeaway is twofold. First, funding does exist, from national bodies like the Football Foundation right down to smaller, faster grants aimed specifically at grassroots clubs — it’s worth actively seeking it out rather than assuming your club won’t qualify. Second, a proper pitch or equipment assessment, like the one that transformed Fishguard’s approach, can often unlock far more value from a grant than the original, narrower request would have.

Adult grassroots football isn’t short on passion, volunteers, or players willing to turn up every Sunday. What it’s short on, according to the data, is money. Closing that gap is going to take a combination of external funding, smarter spending, and clubs supporting each other with the kind of practical knowledge that turned one Welsh club’s mower request into a full pitch transformation.