The ambition

Sport has the power to inspire. The most effective sport-for-impact organisations demonstrate that purpose and commercial value can go hand in hand.

The Leeds United Foundation was founded in 2010 as Leeds United Football Club’s official charity. With the arrival of a new CEO and supportive, ambitious club leadership, they have challenged themselves to become a force for young people across the West Yorkshire region.

The Foundation now aspires to match the Premier League standards of its parent club – not just on the pitch, but in its community impact.

Their new goal is bold: to use the power of football to make Leeds a great place to be young — regardless of whether you support Leeds United.

The challenge

With a strong track record of community delivery and the power of the Leeds United brand behind it, the Foundation recognised the opportunity to raise its game. It wanted to move beyond business as usual — to take risks, attract new funding, and tell a story that would inspire support and drive real change in the communities it serves.

To realise this ambition, the Leeds United Foundation needed a new strategy: one that aligned its social goals with operational capabilities, and the long-term direction of the football club itself.

Firetail worked with the Foundation to translate this ambition into a clear, actionable strategy — defining what success would look like and how to get there.

Our approach

Firetail led a comprehensive strategy development process that combined research, stakeholder interviews, and peer benchmarking, bringing in perspectives from across the club, the city, youth services, and other leading football charities. Throughout, it was critical to get buy-in from the board and club leadership.

Through this process, we aimed to address the core questions:

• Where can the Foundation have the greatest local impact?

• How can it differentiate itself in a crowded sector of similar organisations?

• How can it serve non-supporters while maintaining its authentic connection to club heritage?

• And how can its work add value, not just socially, but commercially for the club?

Our benchmarking exercise examined not just other football club charities, but also other leading sport and youth organisations, revealing diverse models for effective and sustainable impact within local contexts and communities.

The process helped the Foundation articulate a broader civic ambition: to support every young person in the region, regardless of their connection to the football club. That required rethinking not just programmes, but how the Foundation operates — its governance, fundraising, communications, and relationship with the club.

The result?

The Foundation now has a five-year strategy that matches its ambition. It sets out clear priorities — where to focus, how to grow, and how to align with the club without being defined by it.

The new strategy clarifies this relationship. It shows how the Foundation can be a connector, a catalyst for partnerships, and a contributor to long-term club success, including through brand equity, youth development, and infrastructure development. 

The strategy has strong backing from the Foundation board and senior leaders at Leeds United. The club has committed to invest in staff and infrastructure — signalling a new phase in the relationship, rooted in shared purpose.

The Leeds United Foundation's journey offers important lessons for people thinking about the role of impact and purpose in sport:

1. Social impact is core to sport: A charity can deliver commercial value while maintaining independent social purpose. This isn't a zero-sum game; the most effective strategies create mutual benefit. Alignment between the board, corporate partners, and local communities is key.

2. Build sustainable structures: Long-term impact requires funding models aligned to the strategy, not the other way around. Partnerships that survive beyond funding cycles and leadership changes connect you to your community.

3. Go back to basics. A clear strategy gives you a sense of what you might say no to. This protects the organisation from being shaped by the funding and programmes made available to it.

4. Senior sponsorship is vital. The more purpose and social impact are seen as core to a club’s strategy, the greater the possibilities. Building purpose into the core business model leans on backing from the leadership, trustees, partners, and commercials sponsors.

5. Collaboration is key: Recognise your strengths and those of others. The Leeds United badge is an incredibly strong asset that grants access to underserved spaces. Partnering with other local actors provides opportunities to have a greater impact within these spaces.

Wondering how your sport organisation can create sustainable community impact?

Firetail supports organisations across the UK and beyond to turn ambition and purpose into coherent and sustainable strategy. 

Whether you're refining your strategy, measuring and evaluating impact, or rethinking your charity's place within the sports landscape, we'd love to talk.