In 2005, when Sir Keith Mills, as International President and CEO of London 2012, and Lord Seb Coe took their team to Singapore to bid for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, they made a number of promises.

The most ambitious of these promises was that if successful, they would use the Games to ‘Inspire a Generation’.

Sported was founded in 2008 by Sir Keith Mills as his personal commitment to deliver on this important promise and to ensure a fitting legacy was left in the UK.

His ambition was to not only inspire a generation to play sports, but to use sport as a way of inspiring young people to overcome their personal hurdles and fulfil their potential in life.

Over a decade later, Sported now impacts on young people across the UK by resourcing the local groups that address issues that positively shape their lives.

In 2024, the charity reached the milestone of taking its funds distributed to £10 million. However the value delivered through support and encouragement is the difference-maker that is the real gold medal.

Sir Keith said: “I’m incredibly proud of the impact that Sported has made right across the UK over the last 10 years, helping thousands of community sports clubs provide support for hundreds of thousands of young people. 

“Sported has been instrumental in changing the lives of young people and making a real difference to local communities.”