Gotham FC and Bank of America formalized a strategic partnership on April 6, 2026, centering on youth sports access in underserved communities across New York and New Jersey. The Gotham FC Bank of America partnership names the financial institution as the club’s Official Retail Bank and presenting sponsor of Elevate Play, a community initiative the club launched in October 2025.
Key Takeaways
- Bank of America becomes Gotham FC’s Official Retail Bank and presenting sponsor of the Elevate Play youth access initiative
- The partnership will deliver 20 school-based trainings through Playworks curriculum and 10,000 complimentary match tickets to youth, educators, and caregivers
- Only 1 in 5 children in New York and New Jersey meet daily physical activity recommendations, while youth average 5+ hours of screen time per day
- Free Soccer With Us clinics will target underserved communities across the region
- Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund serves as the founding philanthropic partner of Elevate Play
How the Gotham FC Bank of America Partnership Structures Youth Outreach
The deal packages measurable community deliverables into a corporate sponsorship. Bank of America funds access programming. In return, the bank gets brand integration, client reward opportunities, and community positioning across the New York and New Jersey metro area.
The numbers are specific. Twenty school-based trainings will use curriculum from Playworks NY/NJ, which launched in 2009 and draws on more than 30 years of organizational experience across 15 regional offices nationally. Ten thousand complimentary tickets will go to young people, educators, and caregivers for 2026 home matches at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, NJ. Free Bank of America Soccer With Us clinics round out the programming.
Alex Chang, Gotham FC’s Chief Revenue Officer, framed the deal around sustained community building: “Bank of America is a powerful partner in Gotham’s mission to expand access to the game and deepen our impact across New York and New Jersey. With their support of Elevate Play, we will continue reaching more young people and families with meaningful opportunities to engage in sport while growing on and off the pitch. We are incredibly appreciative of their commitment to this work and in helping us build stronger, more connected communities through soccer.”
The Activity Gap Driving Corporate Interest
The partnership responds to a stark regional data point: only 1 in 5 children in New York and New Jersey meet daily physical activity recommendations. Youth in the region average more than five hours of screen time per day.
For a bank serving nearly 70 million U.S. clients through approximately 3,600 retail financial centers, tying community credibility to a tangible youth health problem offers clear CSR value. José Tavarez, President of Bank of America New York City, connected the two brands directly: “We’re incredibly excited to partner with the championship-winning Gotham FC — a team that, like Bank of America, embodies excellence, teamwork, and a deep commitment to community. Through this partnership, we’re enthusiastic to expand participation and access to soccer through clinics and educational programming across New York and New Jersey.”
Laurie M. Tisch, whose Illumination Fund served as Elevate Play’s founding philanthropic partner, stated: “Addressing the play deficit in our communities requires sustained, collective investment in young people. As the founding philanthropic partner of Elevate Play, we are proud to have helped launch this initiative with Gotham FC, reflecting the club’s deep commitment to social impact. Welcoming Bank of America as presenting sponsor will expand its reach and deepen its impact, giving more children across New York and Northern New Jersey access to the physical, social, and emotional benefits of play.”
A Replicable Sponsorship Model for Professional Clubs
Gotham FC brings significant on-field credibility to the table. The club won its first NWSL championship in 2023, a second in 2025, and captured the inaugural 2024-25 Concacaf W Champions Cup. That competitive resume gives sponsors a winning brand to attach community programming to.
The structural lesson here matters beyond the trophy case. Gotham FC built a community access initiative first, with philanthropic seed funding from the Illumination Fund. Then it packaged that initiative, complete with quantifiable outputs like ticket counts and training sessions, into a corporate sponsorship. The model integrates youth outreach into a revenue-generating sponsorship structure.
Robin Grossman, Executive Director of Playworks NY/NJ, underscored the human side: “Play is a fundamental human need. When children play, they build resilience, compassion, and confidence. Through play, they learn to make friends, solve problems, and believe in themselves — even in challenging times.”
Gotham FC and Bank for Youth Sports Operators
Club directors and facility operators should study Gotham FC’s sequencing: philanthropic funding launched the program, measurable outputs justified scale, and corporate sponsorship followed. Bank of America’s presenting sponsor role shows that financial institutions will fund access programming when youth outreach metrics — ticket counts, school trainings, clinic reach — are packaged as concrete deliverables. Operators running community access programs in underserved markets can use this model to approach CSR-aligned corporate partners with specific numbers, not just mission statements. The 10,000-ticket and 20-training framework offers a ready benchmark for structuring similar deals at the regional club level. directly.
Source: Newsroom Bankofamerica
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