Players Health Foundation and Positive Coaching Alliance Partner to Pair Athlete Safety Grants With Coach Education

MINNEAPOLIS, MN and OAKLAND, CA — The Players Health Foundation and Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) today announced a national partnership that connects the Foundation's athlete safety grants and resources with PCA's coach education programming.

Under the agreement, the Players Health Foundation is making a contribution to PCA and will help cover the cost of PCA's online coaching curriculum for organizations that receive Foundation grants. The partnership reflects a shared conviction that a safe sports environment is more than a physically safe one. Facilities, protocols, and screening protect the body. Coaching culture shapes everything else: whether a young athlete speaks up when something is wrong, whether they stay in the game, and whether they leave sports with confidence rather than burnout.

"Almost everything a young athlete takes away from sport comes through their coach. That is where confidence gets built or broken, and it is where a kid decides whether it is safe to speak up. PCA's education is safety education. We wanted it in the hands of the organizations we support, and we did not want cost to be the reason it never got there."

Through the agreement, the Players Health Foundation is making an unrestricted contribution in support of PCA's mission of ensuring every young person, regardless of social or economic circumstance, has access to a positive youth sports experience. The Foundation will also help cover the cost of seats in PCA's online coaching courses on behalf of its grantees, making coach education a standard component of what a Foundation grant delivers rather than an added cost the grantee has to absorb.

For many of the community organizations the Foundation supports, that distinction matters. Coach education is often the first line item cut when budgets tighten, even though it is among the highest-leverage investments a program can make. Removing the cost removes the tradeoff.

"Every young athlete deserves a coach who knows how to build confidence, create belonging, and help kids thrive. By partnering with the Players Health Foundation, we're removing barriers to coach education so more organizations—especially those serving under-resourced communities—can provide the positive, safe sports experience every child deserves."

Additional program details, including how grantees will access PCA courses, will be shared with Foundation grant recipients directly.