Sports and Entertainment Events Fund Grants
FIFA World Cup Related Round 2 of Funding
REQUEST FOR RESPONSES (RFR) AND APPLICATION INFORMATION
RFR RELEASE DATE: Tuesday, April 7, 2026
ONLINE APPLICATION AND DUE DATE: Applications must be submitted by Tuesday, April 28, 2026 at 3:00pm eastern time. Application link: https://mott.submittable.com/submit. Online applications only. Applications must include all required documentation by the program deadline.
QUESTIONS:
Grant questions must be submitted in writing to Charlie Ticotsky, Deputy Director of the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism (Charlie.ticotsky@mass.gov) by Tuesday, April 21, 2026 at 3:00pm. Questions and responses will be posted online on approximately April 23.
Any applicants experiencing technical difficulties or have technical application questions must alert MOTT by emailing WebManager.MOTT@mass.gov by Monday, April 27, 2026 at noon.
OVERVIEW
The Sports and Entertainment Events Fund was established by Chapter 73 of the Acts of 2025 (“the Act”) to support major sports or entertainment events through a competitive grant program. The program is administered by the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism (MOTT). This round of funding availability consists of $2 million to support municipal public safety costs related to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. This round is not available for operating watch parties.
APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY
Only one application per applicant may be submitted. There must be one lead applicant, but multiple organizations may collaborate on an application. To be eligible for funding, applicants must complete the online application, including all required documentation, by the deadline.
A municipality, public agency, or tribal entity located in Massachusetts is eligible to apply.
Municipal applicants must be in compliance with MBTA Communities Act (Section 3A of MGL c. 40A) if applicable.
The following applicants are ineligible to receive funding:
- Non-governmental organizations including non-profits and for-profits.
- Public colleges and universities or state agencies
- A fiscal sponsor that will pass through funds to an ineligible organization
- Applicants not located in Massachusetts
GRANT CATEGORIES AND ELIGIBILITY
Categories of funding are anticipated to include public safety costs to cities and towns consisting of:
- Public safety expenses supporting hosting of FIFA World Cup 2026 matches
- Eligible applicants include Foxborough and communities that border Foxborough and expect to incur reasonable public safety expenses managing impacts of World Cup matches.
- Public safety expenses supporting the Fan Festival on City Hall Plaza in Boston
- Public safety expenses supporting team home bases and base camps (team hotels and team practice facilities)
- Public safety expenses supporting official tournament hotels (accommodating teams and VIPs, not hotels with FIFA hospitality or general public room blocks)
Eligible expenses may include:
- Public Safety staffing including police, fire, emergency medical services, emergency management, public health, and public works
- Equipment needed and available for World Cup-related purposes in the categories of police, fire, emergency medical services, emergency management, public health, and public works
Note: Salaries for employees working directly on the grant award (with the exception of public safety personnel) should be capped at 10%. Salary costs exceeding that cap should detail a specific budget justification in the application and will likely negatively impact the overall application score. For public safety personnel costs, overtime, detail, and regular rates will all be eligible for reimbursement, however, all expenses must be directly tied to World Cup impacts.
Ineligible expenses include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Expenses incurred or obligated prior to January 1, 2026.
- Annual operating expenditures or overhead expenditures (e.g. rent, utilities)
- Salaries, bonuses, or fringe benefits of personnel not directly related to the grant award
- Prize money, gift cards, scholarships, awards, plaques, or certificates
- Purchases of alcohol, cannabis or tobacco
- Legal fees, insurance/liability insurances and/or membership fees
- Mini-grants or reallocation to other organizations without written approval from MOTT
- Any expenses not related to the described grant purposes
MATCHING FUNDS REQUIREMENTS
All grants require at least a 1:1 match. This means that the grant recipient must raise an amount equal to or more than the grant amount. Costs incurred using matching funds must be used for expenses reasonably related to the funded program. Recipients will have until August 31, 2026 to both raise and incur matching funds. Grants that do not fulfill their 1:1 match will be required to reimburse the Commonwealth for the amount not met. Match expenses must be incurred on or after January 1, 2026, through the period of performance of the grant, which ends on August 31, 2026. Prior expenses are not eligible and MOTT is not responsible for any costs incurred in expectation of receipt of the grant. MOTT will make absolutely no exceptions to proposed matching expenses incurred prior to January 1, 2026.
Matching funds may include any of the following assets as sources:
- cash funds, which may be in place prior to grant award
- municipal funding
- in-kind contributions to the project
- capital equipment purchases
- donation of consultant time
- salaries for employees working directly on the grant award
Match amount may not include any of the following assets as sources:
- employee fringe benefits
- consultant fringe benefits
- endowment funds
- MOTT funds, other Commonwealth grant funds, including grants from independent and quasi-public state agencies, and federal grant funds
APPLICATION REVIEW CRITERIA
Applications will be reviewed by the strength of the following criteria.
Budget (50%)
- Strength of budget
- Ability to provide matching funds
- Appropriate timeline
- Alignment/partnership with federal, state, regional, and local public safety agencies
Need for Funding (40%)
- Articulation of need, including specific anticipated days that funding will be used, details of tournament components that require public safety support
- Avoidance of state costs
- Risks if funding is not awarded
Unique Factors (10%)
- How success will be measured
- Unique attributes of proposal
- Equity and inclusion efforts, including for persons with disabilities
- Any particular economic impacts on the tourism industry
DOCUMENTATION, CERTIFICATIONS, AND DISCLOSURES
A number of required documentations, certifications, and disclosures are part of the application pursuant to Chapter 23A, Section 13W(c). These mainly concern procurement and labor regulations and practices. By statute, all applicants must provide documentations, certifications, and disclosures, if relevant to the nature of the application, in order to be eligible to receive grant funding. Not all sections will be applicable to every application. A successful applicant’s good faith failure to provide complete and accurate documentation, certifications and disclosures will result in suspension from the grant program for a period of 30 days, during which MOTT will provide an opportunity for the awardee to address application deficiencies to the satisfaction of MOTT. Failure to cure deficiencies will result in grant termination. A successful applicant’s willful failure to provide accurate documentation, certification and disclosures will result in termination of grant funding and trigger the return of all disbursed funds within 30 days. The Attorney General will take enforcement action for potential violations as necessary.
APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS
The Sports and Entertainment Events Fund Grant Program anticipates awarding up to $2,000,000 in this funding round via a competitive grant process.
Applications must be submitted by Tuesday, April 28, 2026 at 3:00pm eastern time.
Application link: https://mott.submittable.com/submit. Online applications only. Applications must include all required documentation by the program deadline.
Grant questions must be submitted in writing to Charlie Ticotsky, Deputy Director of the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism (Charlie.ticotsky@mass.gov) by Tuesday, April 21, 2026 at 3:00pm. Questions and responses will be posted online on approximately April 23, 2026.
Any applicants experiencing technical difficulties or have technical application questions must alert MOTT by emailing WebManager.MOTT@mass.gov by Monday, April 27, 2026 at noon.
Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism (MOTT) staff will review all complete, eligible proposals submitted by the application deadline. MOTT will award grants based upon criteria outlined above in consultation with the Executive Office of Economic Development (EOED), the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS), the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), and other relevant state agencies, and subject to appropriation.
MOTT reserves the right to make awards in multiple rounds, with or without re-opening the application.
Grant awards are anticipated to be announced in May 2026.
GRANT MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING
Grants will be managed by MOTT staff in conjunction with EOED staff.
Grant funds will be reimbursed on a rolling basis, on a cost-reimbursement basis upon demonstration of incurred costs. Copies of original vendor invoices showing the actual matching and grant costs incurred, the check number, and date of the check corresponding to the invoices must be submitted by the conclusion of the grant period.
As outlined above, all grantees must maintain compliance with required documentations, certifications, and disclosures outlined in the statute.
Grantees are encouraged to support diversity, equity, and inclusion.
MOTT may require grant recipients to meet for progress meetings.
Grant funds (as well as required matching funds) must be spent by August 31, 2026. A final report must be submitted to MOTT by September 30, 2026.