Top 20 Fundraising Ideas For Booster Clubs and School

I often get asked for fundraising ideas for booster clubs, athletic clubs, schools, and sports teams. Of course, the answer is different for each team, but one of the key factors is that whatever type of spirit item you choose to sell, it needs to be fun for the recipient and useful for them (at least useful for that given period of time). I have compiled a list of 20 inexpensive fundraising ideas for your school sports team or booster club that have great profit margins to raise money for your club or team. These spirit items are fun, inexpensive, and generate school spirit. Remember that by getting a business to sponsor the spirit items, they pay for them, and your club can sell them at 100% profit. That is the key to a successful fundraising campaign.

1. Pom Poms - These can be imprinted with your school or team name and can be obtained for well under $1.00 each. Custom imprinted pom poms are crowd favorites and look great in the stands. Fans feel more comfortable cheering on their team when they have some kind of spirit item such as pom poms. Pom poms have been around for years and will be around for years to come as spirit items.

2. Mini Basketballs - Obviously, these work great for basketball teams. You can choose to get either the vinyl mini basketballs or all the way up to tournament quality balls. The vinyl mini basketballs are about the size of a grapefruit and cost around $1.40 or less depending on quantity and are meant as more of a novelty toy for kids. If you feel your fan base will buy full sized basketballs, you can get customized basketballs with your choice of basketball panel colors and multi-colored logos imprinted on the balls.

3. Mini Volleyballs- Volleyball teams can choose from either vinyl mini volleyballs or tournament quality volleyballs. It is important to know your crowd and have an idea of how much money they are willing to spend. There is always the option to take pre-orders for higher ticket items such as tournament quality volleyballs.

4. Mini Footballs - Promotional mini footballs are commonly thrown at football games by the cheerleaders. These mini footballs can be used in 2 different ways for fundraising: a) You can have a business sponsor and put their name on logo on one side of the ball and your school and team name on the other sides of the footballs. With this option, the business actually pays for the footballs and lets the cheerleaders throw the footballs at the games. This helps the team by generating revenue and team spirit from the crowd as well as helping the business who sponsored with cheap advertising. b) You can simply print your school and team name on the footballs and sell them through your booster club to fans. Typically, the business sponsor is much easier and takes less effort. For a typical football game, you want to plan on throwing a minimum of 100 mini footballs, and more for big games such as playoffs and championship games to help keep the crowd going.

5. Mini Soccer Balls- These mini soccer balls can be sold as novelty items to home crowds. The vinyl mini soccer balls are less profitable than selling the tournament quality soccer balls. With full size soccer balls, you can print on every panel for a really dramatic effect. Take pre-orders to avoid being stuck with a large quantity of soccer balls.

6. Thundersticks - Crowds never get tired of thundersticks (or sometimes called thunderstix or bam bams). These thunder sticks can be personalized with a large imprint area. They are easy to sell for $3-$4 per pair, and you can get them for around $1.40 or less per pair. You can print on the both sides of the thunder sticks, so you can get a business sponsor to pay for the thundersticks and sell them to make 100% profit. Thunder sticks have become a standard in any active stadium. These stadium noisemakers bring the stadium to life and helps to encourage the players.

7. Discount Cards - Discount cards are credit card sized plastic cards that have multiple discount offers from local restaurants and retailers. The buyer can usually recoup his/her money after using the discount card only twice. The discount cards are typically printed with about 15 business are 1 side and the school and team name on the other side. Some schools choose to print discount offers on both sides of the cards allowing for more business sponsors. You can charge each business a nominal fee of $50-$100 to advertise their offer. Then you sell the cards for $10 each and make a huge profit. These discount cards are easy sell; they virtually sell themselves if you get some great offers from local businesses. The hardest part is lining up your 10-15 businesses to advertise. This is not difficult though, because most business know that offering discounts brings in business.

8. Stadium Seat Cushions - Stadium seat cushions are another great and traditional fundraising item for stadium sports such as football and basketball. Sponsors can offset the cost of the stadium cushions by ads on the back of the cushion. The booster club can then sell the cushions for $5-$10 to make 100% profit and generate thousands of dollars at a single game. You can sell up to 20 business ads on each side of the stadium cushions. Imagine the amount of money your booster club can earn with the combination of the sponsorship money collected plus the money collected from sales of the stadium cushions!

9. Hand Fans - Sports shaped hand fans are great for games in the South during the beginning of football season. Choose from Football helmet or football shaped hand fans. These fans can be printed with the team schedule, and even a business sponsor name to help offset the cost. Any type of spirit item the fans can hold, such as hand fans, helps make them more comfortable, thus cheering more and louder.

10. Schedule Magnets- All fans need a game schedule and a schedule on a magnet is even better because they won't lose it. Most people will put a magnet on a refrigerator, and think how many times the average person goes to the refrigerator. Fans will buy a schedule magnet, and the profit margins are easily 400%-500%. This will help boost your attendance at games because your fans will always know your game times.

11. Car Magnets - Car magnets with your mascot and team name help to promote team spirit within your community. These are popular with fans because they are easy to remove and cause no damage to their cars. Not only do you make money selling these car magnets, but think how many people will see your team name and mascot on a daily basis. The more people that see you car magnet, the more community support you cultivate.

12. Megaphones - Cheerleaders have used megaphones for years and the the mini plastic megaphones are great for fans to use for cheering for their team. Personalized megaphones are a great way to get your fans loud.

13. Spirit Noodles - Spirit noodles are made of foam and are great to wave around while cheering. These are a great option when noise makers aren't allowed in your stadium. They come in varios shapes and sizes to tailor to your team or school.

14. Foam Fingers - Foam fingers and foam hands come in many different varieties and shapes. There are foam paws, foam talons, foam mascots, and many different foam hand shapes that are great for cheering for your team. These are also great for stadiums that don't allow noisemakers.

15. Sport Horns - Sports horns are unique noise makers that are really loud but come in a small package. These stadium horns take minimal effort to blow and will rock the house and a make a bold statement for your team.

16. Spirit Towels - Spirit towels are classic stadium items to show team spirit. They have a large imprint area and are great to wave around while cheering.

17. Sports Bottles - Personalized sports bottles are great items to fill with drinks at concession stands. The custom printed sport bottles give fans a souvenir to take home after buying a drink. This will encourage fans to buy a drink because they get an item they can keep that is useful after the game. Many concession stands charge an upcharge to get a souvenir mug. If you don't want to use sports bottles, consider stadium cups. Stadium cups are cheap and a great option to use to serve beverages at the stadium.

18. Stadium Blankets - During cold games, stadium blankets are much needed items that are often forgotten by fans. You'll be surprised how many fans will buy a stadium blanket because they forgot to bring their own blanket. Stadium blankets have the ability to generate large profits per sale.

19. Yard Signs - Don't forget about spirit items to promote your team outside from games. The custom yard signs can be sold to fans to proudly display in their yard. These also can have very high profits per sale, and are an easy way to generate large amounts of money in a small amount of time.

20. Hand Clappers - Hand clappers are one of those spirit items that never get old. They make a lot of noise and are fun to use when rooting for your team.

Whatever type of spirit items that you use, make sure they are allowed in your stadium. Most importantly, make sure you do have spirit items available for your fans. Spirit items are the easiest ways to generate team spirit, because fans feel more comfortable cheering when they have a spirit item to use. One important rule to remember is that you don't want to overprice your spirit items. You have to consider the area you live in when determining a reasonable price that the fans will not think is too expensive. School spirit items are easy to sell; therefore, generating lots of money for your school booster club or organization is very easy.

Copyright 2009 Patrick Black and Perfect Imprints. All rights reserved.

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Middle School Training, Fun, Practice, Safety, and Coaching

Points on tackling safely and effectively

It has been stated many times that a defensive teams win games, and the most fundamental part of a defensive team is performing a great tackle. Tackling can be fun and exhilarating, but done improperly and it can be dangerous. When you tackle your opponent remember three important steps:

First, you need to stop the opponent quickly so make sure to place yourself directly in front of the opponent's path. You can do this by placing your foot between your opponent's feet. Also, at this time thrust your arms backward to prepare for the next step.

Second, thrust your other foot again squarely in front of your opponent and with all the momentum that you have brought to the tackle grab your opponent. Now is the time that injuries can happen. The one golden rule in making a safe tackle is to never, ever lead with or try to tackle with the crown of your head. Tell yourself, or your players to imagine that they are biting the football.

The third and last step is to bring your hips up and drive the opponent backwards and towards the ground. Setting yourself up for this last step will ultimately prove the success in the tackle.

Making a great hand off

Learning the basics in a handoff is essential to a strong offense. The hand off can take place in many ways, but most if not all handoffs occur between the quarterback and the running back. The running back starts the hand off running towards the quarterback with his arms open creating a pocket for the quarterback to slide the football right into the running back's chest. Once the quarterback has placed the ball in the pocket, or opening, the running back immediately clamps down on the ball protecting it and holding on to it. Now that the running back has the ball when he leaves the quarterback he should remain low to the ground in order to react quickly on the field.

Some benefits to Weightlifting

Let's not forget weightlifting. It is one of the essential elements that will help you improve your game. The benefits of lifting weights are found in added strength, but more importantly it will increase your maximum power. Maximum power should be the goal of your training, because it involves muscle strength and muscle excursion during play. This exertion will help you as a football player to execute your skills on the field with speed and force. We highly recommend working with a personal trainer when weightlifting to insure that you are doing it properly, and to help you design a program that will fit your position.

The High Toss Football Catch

Because not all throws are perfect you will need to practice making catches that are high or low. As such you need to practice the high passes so that you know to react, here are some basics: Make a diamond with their forefingers and thumbs. Never catch or try to catch a ball with your body, especially a high ball. Important to look the catch through and tuck it away. When you practice a high catch you are going to perform it subconsciously on the field, so remember extend the arms, catch and follow through.

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Koozies: The Perfect Way to Show Your School Spirit

When you think 'school spirit,' particularly in the realm of college football games, what comes to mind? School t-shirts? Pom-poms? Temporary face tattoos? Flags? Signs? Foam hands? Foam heads? Problem is, you've only got two hands! So why not choose something practical when it comes to showing school spirit?

Koozies, also known as "can coolers" and "can coolies" are insulated beverage holders that come in a variety of colors and designs. They essentially keep your drinks cold, while your hand doesn't turn into an iceberg. Plus nobody likes walking around with a wet hand. Most importantly, you don't have to hold on up the way you would a sign or a flag. It's a subtle way of showing fellow fans who you are and what you're all about.

Most colleges and universities have custom koozies available for their fans to purchase. They are relatively inexpensive to buy, and are particularly cheap when purchased in bulk. Often times schools will hand them out as part of a giveaway promotion during homecoming week.

Can coolers are also great as souvenir items. When people go to college championship games or bowl games, they are often asked to bring back gifts for friends. Buying t-shirts for 15 different people can get pricey, especially around the holidays. Bringing home 15 koozies can be super cheap, and that way you can be sure to include everyone.

You can find college football koozies just about anywhere online or by going to your university bookstore. Sports stores that sell college football merchandise should have them as well, or they can tell you where to go about finding them.

You can even have your own custom koozies made for you and your tailgate group. Say you represent a particular fraternity or sorority at your alma mater. With permission from the school, you can incorporate the school logo along with the organization's logo. You can give them out at homecoming or use them for fundraising.

Typically when dealing with college logos and licensing, it's best to purchase can coolers from a manufacturer that already has a license to do so. Purchasing your own license can be a very time-consuming and costly process. A licensed manufacturer can sell them to you for a reasonable cost and you won't have to worry about legal issues later.

Discount Koozies

Discount Can Coolers

Enhancing High School Football Running Back Routines

Weightlifting

Let's not forget weightlifting. It is one of the essential elements that will help you improve your game. The benefits of lifting weights are found in added strength, but more importantly it will increase your maximum power. Maximum power should be the goal of your training, because it involves muscle strength and muscle excursion during play. Strong and powerful execution will enable fast plays, quick action, and recognition on the field. We highly recommend working with a personal trainer when weightlifting to insure that you are doing it properly, and to help you design a program that will fit your position.

Staying Hydrated

Drinking plenty of water is all it takes to prevent dehydration, and thus should be an important part of football practices. Each athlete should bring or have a water bottle provided, and they need to use it often. Water should never be used as a motivational or reward type basis. When players are hydrated and energized they will practice harder and learn more.

Powerful Blocking Strategy: Double Teaming

In various plays whether you are on offense or defense you will want to have a strategic advantage over your opponents. A great technique that will give you an advantage on the line is double team blocking. It is basically putting two linemen on one. If you ever need to get a running back through or perform a great blitz, remember this technique. The basics are simple for this technique: First, both players will need to step together, and put their hips together. They form a wall that the opponent cannot break. The double team should focus on the shoulders, and arm pits of the opponent to control dominance. To be effective the double team has to work in a fast blitz like maneuver.

Traditional Driving Block

Simple drives are important for linemen to practice and perfect. Hence the name for the most common drive: the drive block. This drive block means that you are going to push the opponent in the direction that they are aligned. If the Defensive lineman is aligned slightly to the right of the offensive linemen then the drive block with pus the defender to the right. When executing this block start with your play side foot, meaning if the play is on the right side of you it will be your right foot. Connect hard against your opponent, bring your other foot into play and continue to drive in the aligned direction.

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NCAA Gear to Show School Spirit

At its heart, school spirit is a way to honor your institution and identify with your class mates and alumni. Participation in events which are school spirit based is a group bonding experience. There are many ways to become a part of showing your support for your school. One of the most common methods is to attend team events. NCAA stands for the National Collegiate Athletic Association and it is a consortium of the nation's colleges and universities govern their athletics programs. Joining the NCAA is a great way to not only help the organization thrive; you are by extension supporting student athletes and the programs in which they participate.

You can show your school spirit each day by sporting the team colors with clothing and accessories that are emblazoned with the insignia. Branded items are readily available on the web for easy shipment to your door. A good example is the offerings for Illini Fans. Available is the University of Illinois Backpack. The backpack is blue with the easily identifiable orange I with Illinois printed in white. This backpack is lightweight and a generous 18" x 12" x 10" in size, fully capable of carrying a number of books or gear on a short hike. It is also a great visual for promoting U of Illinois. Illini fans can also choose the scrub top. This is a 100% cotton garment that is great for showing your support.

Every square inch of the top is covered with the U of I logo. Georgia Tech fans also have much to choose from. The apparel and accessory choices are endless. There is a great set of Georgia Tech boxers that are perfect for wearing to the health club or around town. These 100% cotton boxers are comfortable and very appealing. And people will know that you are a Georgia Tech fan whether you are coming or going as every bit of the shorts sport the very distinctive Georgia Tech logo. The Florida State Seminoles logo is distinctive and dramatic. Fans of the Seminoles have some striking merchandise to select from. One of the coolest items is the earmuff pack. It is a heavy cotton blend with a waterproof skin that will keep your ears dry and warm when inclement weather hits. Wearing it readily identifies your allegiance to the Florida State Seminoles.

NCAA sportswear is colorful, fun to wear and it not only reflects your school spirit, and it supports student athletes. A multitude of items can be found online for easy shipment to your door. NCAA sportswear is also excellent for gift giving and makes for a great solution when you don't know what to get that special someone.

Written by Steve Jacobs of the cool party store

Youth Football Sportsmanship - The Ultimate Story the Gainseville State School

Overt Sportsmanship in Youth Football, We Don't See Enough of It

When coaching youth football, you have a bully pulpit available from which to infuse your players with various character traits. One phenomenal Texas High School Football coach decided to do something from his bully pulpit in a game that would forever impact both teams.

A Very Compelling Story

In November 2008, Faith Christian High School located in Grapevine, Texas was to play the Gaineville State School. Faith Christian is a well-supported and very talented private school located in very well-off north Dallas. The Gainseville State school is located in Gainesville, is a maximum-security correctional facility for juvenile "throw aways" located 75 miles north of Dallas.

Faith Chrisitan vs Gainesville Prison School

The Gainesville team had just 14 players. All of them had been convicted of serious crimes ranging from assault, robbery or drugs etc. But each player had earned the right to participate by following a rigid set of guidelines. This teams record was a dismal 0-8 and this was to be the final game of their hapless season. They had scored just 2 touchdowns leading up to the match-up with Faith. The Gainesville team was also playing without three of the teams best players, as these three had been released from custody the previous week. As you can imagine, this is the ultimate "turnstyle team" players are added to and subtracted from the team weekly based on sentencing and release dynamics as well as meeting the strict eligibility guidelines within the Gainesville system.

Note that most of us youth football coaches whine when we are missing a single player for a game or a player or two starts out a few days or even a week late from the opening day of football practice. Imagine losing a third of your team during each season and having a third or more kids absent at the first day of football practice.

Gainesville travels to its games in a bus with bars over its windows and with 12 armed guards, They play all their games away, no home games and they rarely draw more than a 5-6 fans and usually suit up just 14 players. Faith on the other hand has a very supportive and enthusiastic fan base of 200 plus at each game. They were 7-2 going into this game and typically suit 70 kids or more for most games. Faith of course has the latest and greatest equipment and amenities, in stark contrast to their Gainesville opponents. It would be safe to say these two teams are worlds apart in almost every measurable aspect one could think of.

A Bigger Mission

But Faith head coach Kris Hogan felt he wanted to give some of what his kids had in their home life to the Gainesville players. He felt moved to do something special for the kids on the Gainesville team for this one game. He knew kids like the young men on the

Gainesville team. Coach knew the kind of family life they usually came from. He understood the lack of support many of them have had growing up. He wondered aloud how many of these kids had been given up on and how he could do something real to provide them each with some hope. Coach wanted his team and his parents to be that light, to let these "throw aways" know that not everyone had given up on them, that there were people out there that cared about them. Coach Hogan wanted the Gainesville kids to know there were people that were inspired by something greater than themselves that allowed them to love and support the "unloveable".

Parents and Players Join In

Coach Hogan called a meeting of his supportive parents and shared his vision of what he was trying to accomplish, Together they came up with an idea to split the Faith fans into 2 groups. One group would root for Faith, the other for Gainesville. The cheering would not only be for the Gainesville team, but individually by player name as well. When was the last time you think someone had yelled " Way to go Tommy, good play" to one of those Gainseville kids? The parents built a banner for the Tornadoes to run through and at games end put together a body-by-body "Victory Tunnel" for the players and coaches to run through. The Faith team also sent each player home with a sack dinner of a warm hamburger, fries and candy along with a Bible and inspirational personal notes from parents and players.

While Faith won the game 33-14, at the end of the game there were as many smiles on the faces of the Gainseville team as were on the faces of the victorious members of the Faith team. The Tornado players were astounded at the reception they received, as they are nearly always taunted by opposing players and fans with the most cruel and demeaning actions and words.

What Did This Teach the Faith Kids?

How about the Faith kids, what did they get out of this? How many of these kids now know about how fortunate they are to have supportive and loving parents, something most of them probably take for granted? How many of them now know what true compassion is?

What Then for Us Coaching Youth Football?

Football is a game that can teach many life lessons, it's up to you as coach to determine which lessons are important enough to be taught. The game is meant to be played to win, but you can do your very best, play to win, be a good sport and compassionate as well, they are not mutually exclusive goals. When was the last time you did something for your kids or opponents that left a permanent positive lasting memory into their memory bank, one that taught them how to be a better person? By nature I'm competitive. my youth football teams have won over 90% of our games over the last 11 seasons. But we feel very confident we can have a competitive program that also develops character and is a good experience for both our kids and the kids we play against.

It's very humbling to read stories like this. We think we are doing great things by providing cold soft drinks to the other team after each game, being great sports, letting off the gas when ahead big or even on occasion letting the other team score on purpose when ahead by 4-5 scores. But by thinking outside the confines of the box, what other things can we do as youth football coaches to impact kids for eternity? How can we be more like coach Hogan?

Dave Cisar-

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Texas High School Football

Bringing the best of all high school football players is the Txprepsfootball All Texas Team. These are elite members of Texas high school football teams. One of the players is Garrett Gilbert from Lake Travis. Garrett has hit the records with 4,826 yards in a single season. He is the son of former National Football League Gale Gilbert, who played for the Chargers, Seahawks and the Bills. Not to mention this quarterback has made 52 touch downs in 2007 and he is responsible for leading his team to the Class 4A Division II State Championship.

Some of the state records were placed years ago. Kenneth Hall set the record for most career rushing yards at 11,232. That was in Sugar Land 1950-53. Earlier in the century was another phenomenal player, Samuel Baugh. He was named the first best professional football quarterback. He later went on to play for the Washington, Redskins.

Earl Campbell is a Pro football Hall of Fame member. Nicknamed The Tyler Rose (after the place he is from, Tyler, Texas). In 1978 he went on to play for the Houston, Oilers and named the Offensive Rookie of the year and the Most Valuable Player, by the Associated Press. He also went on to play for the New Orleans Saints.

Doak Walker, born in Dallas, Texas, was crowned All American football player with the Heisman Trophy. That was back in 1948. Then he went on to play for the Detroit Lions and helped to pave the way to the National Football League Championships. He too, is a member is the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

There are a total of thirteen outstanding football players from the Texas state history books. All of which have went on to become phenomenal athletes, thus making Texas well known for their talented National Football League players of all time.

Currently, sitting at number four in the nation is the Katy, Texas Tigers. Some former Katy, Texas high school football players include Jorge Diaz, who is offensive lineman went on to play for the National Football League. He played for the Tigers in 1991 and is now with the Tampa Bay, Buccaneers. Eric Heitman is also a offensive lineman playing for the San Francisco 49Er's. He played for the Katy Tigers in 1997.

The Tigers are a great team setting state records. James Aston, a rushing back set the record at 34 rushing carried in a Championship game and that was back in 2003. In 1999, Jamel branch, who is also a rushing back set the record with 249 rushing yards in a Championship game.

Over the years, the state of Texas has brought us some of the most phenomenal athletes. Many of them were branded the best of NFL in some way or another.Also, because Texas has brought the NFL some of the greatest all time players, I believe that is the main reason why Texas high school football is so popular today. They have certainly paved the way for some of the National Football League's finest of all time.

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