Super Bowl Legacy
Since 1992, NFL Charities has provided Super Bowl Host cities with a $1 million Legacy Grant aimed at putting revenues earned by NFL events scheduled around the big game back into the local community and directed toward opening a center for youth enrichment, or an NFL Youth Education Town (NFL YET) in an underserved area of that city.
The Super Bowl Host Committee collaborates on the project by working to gain local public and private support in order to meet the $1 million in match funding required by the investment. The entire endeavor is most succesful when it partners early with its local youth service organization to serve as the lead agency inthe planning stages for program delivery and center operations.
When the Super Bowl returns to a city that already has a preexisting NFL YET, the $1 million contribution along with the $1 million match is reinvested into the existing location. However, the existing NFL YET is still required to submit a propsal in order to receive approval to receive the $1 million Super Bowl Legacy Grant.
The newest NFL YET opened in Honolulu in early 2009. This special NFL YET is the only one that is not associated with a Super Bowl but rather serves as a legacy to the Hawaiian youth in honor of the long-standing Pro Bowl host community relationship.
NFL YET facilities and programs vary, as do the number of children that they serve. However, most include interactive fitness equipment, classrooms, technology and multimedia labs, physical fitness zones, athletic and recreation fields and other resources. In some locations, NFL YETs offer full-day school programs as well as after-school services.
In 2003, the NFL enlisted the support of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) to manage the NFL YET initiative and work hand-in-hand with local NFL YETs. This partnership helps to ensure that each location offers programs and services that most effectively meet the needs of the communities they serve through educational enhancement, technical training, life-skills development and recreational opportunities. In the world of youth service delivery, BGCA presents the exemplary operational standards and programmatic delivery to youth with systems of measurement and technical support. NFL Charities is proud to work closely with this partner, especially as we endeavor to launch two new NFL YETs in North Texas, and Indianapolis, Indiana, with Super Bowls XLV and XLVI.