Fundraising for High School Athletic Teams

This guide is part of fundraising for school clubs, teams and boosters. A school team's money usually sits in two places: the team's school activity account, run by the coach under district rules, and a booster club, run by parents. Each has its own rules, so start by knowing which one is raising the money. This page covers what is particular to school sports: the state athletic association, game nights, the concession stand and banners. Youth and club teams outside a school can skip the association rules; the pledge-event guides linked below fit them too.

State athletic association rules

Every state has an association that governs high school sports, and its rules on amateur status and awards reach into fundraising: what an athlete may receive, what a coach may accept and what booster money may pay for. Texas's University Interscholastic League (UIL) publishes booster club guidelines that show the kinds of limits to look for:

• Coaches' gift limit. Coaches and directors of UIL activities may not accept more than $500 in money, product or service from any source in a calendar year (Section 481).
• No booster money to coaches. Schools may not pay coaches, and coaches may not accept, funds gathered by a high school booster club (Section 1202(b)).
• Coaches advise; they don't control the money. UIL says coaches and directors should serve only in an advisory role, without control of or signature authority over booster funds, petty cash included. A coach's wish list should be approved by school administration before it goes to the boosters.
• Athletes and "valuable consideration." Under the athletic amateur rule (Section 441), students may not accept money or other valuable consideration from booster club funds for a non-school purpose. A violation can cost a student varsity eligibility in that sport.
• Meals and travel go through the school. The district decides when and from whom athletes may receive meals and snacks. Boosters may donate money or goods to the school, with administrative approval, for things like commercial transportation or team meals; paying those costs directly without approval is a violation.
• No booster-funded camps or private lessons. Athletic booster funds may not be used to support athletic camps, clinics, private instruction or other activities outside the school.
• Awards and banquets need approval. Patches, T-shirts and other achievement awards fall under UIL's awards rule, and banquets for students need prior school approval.
• The superintendent is in charge. Booster clubs have no authority to direct the duties of district employees, and sales campaigns should be coordinated through school administration so teams don't run overlapping sales.

Outside Texas, look for the same topics in your association's handbook or constitution. The headings vary, but the questions don't:

• Amateur or eligibility rule: what an athlete may accept, from whom, and whether booster money counts.
• Awards rule: the value limit on awards, letter jackets, rings and banquet gifts, and who must approve them.
• Booster section: whether boosters may pay coaches, supplement salaries, fund camps or buy equipment directly.
• Coach gifts: any dollar cap on what coaches may accept, and from whom.
• Recruiting and undue influence: whether booster activity aimed at incoming students is restricted.
• Hosting events: sanctioning, fees and gate-sharing rules if the team hosts a tournament or meet.

Who keeps which game-night dollar

A home game produces several kinds of income, and districts often split them between the school and the boosters. Miami-Dade's booster guidelines, for example, require admission and participation fees to be accounted for in the school's internal fund, while letting the principal assign program and concession sales to a booster club. Ask your district how it divides each line before you budget.

A 50/50 drawing is a raffle in most states, which means licensing or eligibility rules and sometimes a ban on school property; Miami-Dade, for one, prohibits raffles on school grounds. Before selling a single ticket, ask the athletic director whether the district allows drawings at games and check with your state's charitable gaming regulator whether the club needs a license.

Running the concession stand

For many booster clubs, the stand is the steadiest income of the year. It works because the crowd is already there; what decides the margin is buying, pricing and staffing.

Food rules

Federal Smart Snacks standards cover food sold to students during the school day, so an evening or Saturday game is outside them, while a pep rally snack table during school hours is inside them; the Smart Snacks rules and state exempt-fundraiser limits explain the details. District wellness policies can still apply at night. Ask your county health department whether the stand needs a temporary food permit, and keep allergen signs on the menu board.

Sales tax

Concession tax depends on the state. Texas's Comptroller says food and drinks sold at a concession stand during a school-sanctioned event are exempt, baked goods are nontaxable unless heated or sold with eating utensils, and admission tickets to athletic events are exempt when a nonprofit provides the event and no individual benefits. Spirit wear sold at the same table is taxable outside the group's tax-free days. Other states treat concessions and tickets differently, so ask your state's tax agency or the district business office how the stand's sales and the gate are taxed before the first game.

Margin and staffing

Example A booster club buys $600 of food and drinks for a home game, sells $1,500 and spends $60 on cups, napkins and fuel. It keeps $840 ($1,500 − $600 − $60). Leftover sealed stock carries to the next game, so track inventory by game rather than by season. The profit calculator compares a season of stands with other options.

• Two adults at the cash box, and a two-person count after the final whistle.
• A short menu with round prices so change is easy.
• Card or phone payments tested before the gates open.
• Shifts by quarter or half, with each team's families taking an assigned game.
• Students helping only as your district allows, with an adult in charge of the stand.

Sponsor banners and program ads

Fence and gym banners are the most visible sponsorship a school sells, and businesses like them because the same families see them every week. The school sponsorship guide covers pricing tiers and how to ask; its district rules checklist applies directly to banners. Settle these before you sell:

• Where banners may hang. Fences, gym walls and scoreboards are district property, and some districts limit or contract out advertising on them.
• Who signs. The booster club or the district. Scoreboard and naming deals are often district contracts.
• What's excluded. Many districts bar alcohol, tobacco, vaping and cannabis businesses.
• Season and size. State the dates, the size, who prints and who pays for printing.
• Recognition, not advertising. A name, logo and thanks help keep the payment a sponsorship for federal tax purposes; prices, endorsements or calls to buy can change that, as the sponsorship letter guide explains.

Program ads sit closer to yearbook ads, which the yearbook and student media guide treats as advertising rather than sponsorship. Send the ask with the sponsorship letter templates , then confirm the terms in writing:

A pledge event for the whole roster

A walk-a-thon, jog-a-thon or fun run turns a team's fitness into pledges from relatives and neighbors, with nothing to sell or deliver. Run it as a team or booster fundraiser for a shared goal, such as travel or new equipment, rather than crediting each athlete. Swim and dive teams can do the same in the pool with a swim-a-thon and per-length pledges. The live guides cover the details: a sports team walk-a-thon, a jog-a-thon for teams and booster clubs and a sports team fun run. Cheer and dance squads often join the football program's event; the spirit team fundraising guide covers how they split the total.

More ideas that fit teams

• Alumni game or hall of fame night. Former players pay to play or attend, and local businesses sponsor the evening.
• Hosting a tournament or meet. Gate, concessions and program ads from visiting families, if the school and the association allow the event. The tournament fundraiser guide covers brackets and fees.
• Equipment drives. When the goal is uniforms, pads or a pitching machine, a specific, priced list works better than a general appeal. See fundraising for sports equipment.
• Spirit wear. Team shirts and hats sold at games and online; check tax rules and the district's logo policy. The spirit wear guide compares preorder and stocked sales.
• Service days. Athletes rake leaves, wash cars or clean up after a community event for donations; ask the district about car wash rules. The car wash water and safety rules explain what cities usually ask for.

Spread these across the year with the other groups at school. Football boosters, the band and the senior class often sell to the same families in the same month; put every group's dates on one shared fundraising calendar, and compare game nights with the band boosters' concert-season plans, since the band plays the same home games.

Sources

1. Booster Club Guidelines, University Interscholastic League (Texas) (accessed 2026-10-30)
2. Smart Snacks in School: Fundraisers, U.S. Department of Agriculture (accessed 2026-10-30)
3. Publication 94-183: School Fundraisers, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (accessed 2026-10-30)
4. Booster Club Guidelines (with Board Policies 9211, 5830 and 7510), Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Division of Athletics and Activities (accessed 2026-10-30)