GrantRadar

UK Research and Innovation (AHRC)

Long-term cultural and sporting events legacy

AHRC and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) fund one research project to track the long-term impact and legacy of major UK sporting and cultural events, running a live experimental evaluation that fills gaps in existing methods. One case study must be the 2027 Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes Grands Départs, with baselines set before the event and research continuing for two years after it. The project lead must be employed by a UK research organisation eligible for UKRI funding, though practitioners and evaluation experts without academic posts are welcome. The project can cost £1.1 million to £1.32 million full economic cost, of which UKRI pays 80%, starting on 1 May 2027 for up to 34 months.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
£1,100,000 – £1,320,000
Deadline
44 days left
1 December
Effort
Heavy
budgets, references, often several stages

Who can apply

  • Organisations with UKRI standard eligibility; the project lead and any co-leads must be employed and supported by an eligible UK research organisation for the duration of the award (a contract need not be in place when applying, and need not be permanent)
  • The lead must have the skills to lead the project, needs no particular qualification such as a PhD, and does not need an academic research or teaching post: practitioners and evaluation experts are welcome
  • The lead must be primarily based and permitted to work in the UK
  • Co-leads are allowed without limit if each is justified
  • UK business or third sector researchers can join as a co-lead or project partner, funded at 100% FEC, but cannot lead
  • International co-leads are not allowed
  • Government departments and arm's length bodies cannot apply
  • Teams should span a range of UK locations and career stages and must have dedicated administrative support recruited for the project
  • Open to the research communities of all UKRI councils and Innovate UK
  • Demand management does not apply

What it funds

Research on the long-term legacy of major UK sporting or cultural events that tests and expands the framework in the DCMS report Measuring the legacy and impact of major events, for example:

  • Combining hyper-local, real-time data with national datasets to set more accurate baselines
  • Adapting causal inference models, such as synthetic controls and counterfactuals, across different event types for both economic and intangible social outcomes
  • Governance frameworks and early bidding requirements that keep longitudinal data collection and evaluation funded after the delivery organisation dissolves
  • Transition plans and policy interventions that turn temporary event effects into longer-term outcomes
  • Monitoring and evaluation designs that improve the evidence base and drive longer-term legacy outcomes
  • Costs for activities that are clearly justified and aligned with the project aims, including a dedicated administrative resource recruited for the project

one case study must be the 2027 Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Grands Départs (agreement with event stakeholders has been secured); you can add your own case studies of similar major one-off UK events live during the project. Methods must be compatible with Green Book and Magenta Book principles, and experimental methods including randomisation are of particular interest. The project includes monthly check-ins with DCMS, regular dissemination and teach-in sessions, and quarterly advisory group meetings.

What it will not fund

  • Projects focused on activities outside the DCMS remit, except where they usefully inform activities within it
  • Grant extensions (other than a reasonable, justified no-cost extension), continuing similar or existing activities, or conducting further research
  • Activities to develop or extend an existing resource or website
  • Principally academic outputs without adequate arrangements for practical findings and tools useful to DCMS and sector stakeholders
  • Project studentships (funding PhD study)
  • International co-leads
  • Uninvited resubmissions of projects already submitted to UKRI

How to apply

  1. Make sure your research organisation is registered on the UKRI Funding Service (Je-S is not used)
  2. Start an application on the UKRI Funding Service (https://funding-service.ukri.org/OPP1421/apply/1457) and confirm you are the project lead
  3. Answer the questions in the text boxes: summary, core team, discipline classification, vision, approach, applicant and team capability (R4RI format), ethics and RRI, resources and cost justification, project partners, data management and sharing, and Trusted Research and Innovation
  4. Upload the project partners' letters of support as a single PDF
  5. Send the completed application to your research office for checking
  6. Your research office submits the application so that AHRC receives it by 4pm on 1 December 2026

your application, including personal information, is shared with DCMS for assessment. Submitted applications cannot be changed.

Have ready

  • Online application on the UKRI Funding Service
  • Letters or emails of support from each named project partner, as a single PDF in English or Welsh, up to two sides of A4 per partner
  • Data management plan (up to 300 words)

letters of support are not needed from the host, project co-lead or other UK research organisations.

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