NFL Foundation Grassroots

The NFL Foundation Grassroots Program provides non-profit, neighborhood-based organizations with financial and technical assistance to improve the quality, safety and accessibility of local football fields. The program is a partnership of the National Football League Foundation, which provides funding, and LISC, which provides technical assistance and manages the program.

Athletic fields can help transform neighborhoods by offering opportunities for recreation, education and relaxation that contribute to the local quality of life. The NFL Foundation Grassroots Program seeks to redress the shortage of clean, safe and accessible football fields in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.

LISC identifies local, nonprofit, community-based agencies that have an interest in building or refurbishing football fields in schools and neighborhood parks. Through the program, local agencies are provided with the necessary financing and technical assistance to improve the quality and safety of fields in their communities. The agencies oversee the construction, maintenance, and programming of the fields.

Since the inception of the program, 12 Indianapolis fields have been improved including:

Douglas Park (1999)
Gustafson Park (2003)
Ben Davis High School Football Field (2004)
Lutheran High School Football Field (2005)
Christian Park (2006), Evans Football Field (2007)
George Washington Community High School (2008)
The Legacy Recreation Center/Arsenal Tech High School (2009)
Central Greens Field (2013)
Decatur Central Devere Fair Stadium (2019)
Sean Cowdrey Health & Wellness Complex Athletic Field/Phalen Leadership Academies (awarded in 2022, to be completed in 2023)
Crispus Attucks (awarded in 2023, to be completed in 2024).