Problem addressed

Too many people in society face persistent barriers to inclusion, belonging, and opportunity. These challenges can lead to isolation, reduced wellbeing, limited access to education or employment, and disengagement from community life. 

Sport is often seen solely as physical activity, but it has untapped potential to drive broader social change. It can be a powerful catalyst—not just for improving health, but for building confidence, fostering relationships, strengthening communities, and opening new life pathways. 

To unlock this potential, sport must be intentionally designed with and for the people it aims to support. This means going beyond participation to co-create inclusive, empowering experiences that reflect the needs, strengths, and voices of diverse communities. By embedding human-centred design, local responsiveness, and co-creation into delivery, sport can become a transformative force for belonging, resilience, and opportunity.

Innovative solution

Sport4Empowerment uses a design thinking and co-creation approach to reimagine how sport and physical activity can drive social innovation. Rather than prescribing fixed interventions, the programme empowers Local Sports Partnerships and dedicated ESF+ Social Innovation in Sport Officers to collaborate directly with individuals and communities to co-design initiatives that respond to their real, lived needs. 

Each local initiative is unique — shaped through engagement with target groups and tailored to the specific social, cultural, and economic contexts of the area. This decentralised, human-centred design model ensures that sport is not only inclusive, but also relevant and impactful in addressing broader challenges such as social isolation, unemployment, and lack of educational pathways. 

A national support structure underpins this local innovation, including ongoing training in social innovation methodologies, peer-to-peer learning through an ESF+ Social Innovation in Sport Officer network, and a strong focus on monitoring, evaluation, and storytelling. Together, this creates a dynamic ecosystem that allows for experimentation, learning, and scaling what works — making sport a strategic entry point for social inclusion, empowerment, and systemic change

Key results and benefits

The Sport4Empowerment programme is demonstrating how sport can be a powerful tool for inclusion, empowerment, and social innovation across Ireland. Through the national network of ESF+ Social Innovation in Sport Officers, Local Sports Partnerships are co-designing locally tailored initiatives with communities, resulting in impactful, context-specific responses to complex social challenges. 

This approach has already led to the development of new and innovative programmes that engage a diverse range of target groups, examples include 

Sport and physical activities have helped build trust and community among International Protection Applicants living in temporary accommodation. 

Targeted outreach with the Ukrainian community has created opportunities for social connection and integration through inclusive family sports days. 

Initiatives developed in partnership with the Irish Traveller and Roma communities have fostered intergenerational participation and cultural inclusion through games and physical activity tailored to community interests. 

One of the programme’s standout successes to date is the Donegal Sports Partnership initiative supporting women affected by domestic violence. Developed in partnership with Donegal Domestic Violence Services, this programme offers trauma-informed, confidence-building activities in safe and supportive environments. Its impact was nationally recognised when it won Best Initiative to Promote Diversity & Inclusivity in Sport & Physical Activity at the 2025 Irish Sports Awards, a clear reflection of the programme’s transformative potential. 

Overall, the programme is reaching people who have previously been underrepresented in sport and community life, building trust and connection, and contributing to longer-term pathways in education, training, and employment.

Potential for mainstreaming

Sport4Empowerment is the first programme of its kind in Ireland—funded under the ESF+ Social Innovation priority—that uses sport and physical activity as the foundation for tackling complex social challenges. It demonstrates how sport, when underpinned by co-creation, local responsiveness, and design thinking, can become a dynamic tool for inclusion, empowerment, and community resilience. 

The programme’s structure—anchored by a national network of ESF+ Social Innovation in Sport Officers embedded within Local Sports Partnerships—offers a scalable model for delivery. While initiatives vary by region to reflect local needs, the programme maintains coherence through shared principles, common goals, and centralised supports in innovation training, peer learning, communications, and evaluation. This blend of national coordination and local autonomy allows Sport4Empowerment to be both responsive and replicable. 

The success of the programme—evidenced by its reach among underrepresented communities and national recognition at the 2025 Irish Sports Awards—illustrates its potential for broader impact. Its adaptable framework can be replicated or adapted across other EU Member States, particularly those seeking new approaches to social inclusion, integration, and poverty reduction under ESF+. 

By embedding social innovation principles in sport systems, Sport4Empowerment provides a roadmap for using sport not just as an outcome, but as a process—a means to build trust, foster belonging, and create new pathways to education, employment, and wellbeing. The model offers significant potential for mainstreaming within national and European strategies aimed at inclusive social change.