150,000 euros

Reaction: Mayor releases money for sport

Graz Mayor Elke Kahr reallocates the budget.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Sepp Pail, Christian Jauschowetz)

There was and still is a great deal of excitement in Graz sports following the publication of the budget figures for 2025 - the gaping difference between cultural and sports funding in particular caused a stir. Mayor Elke Kahr responded ahead of the municipal council's budget meeting on Thursday.

"Every cost development that puts the city in a difficult situation also affects private households, NGOs and clubs," said a statement from the town hall. "In order to do justice to the different problem situations, the cuts proposed in the budget are not linear, but rather in line with the possibilities of being able to cope with tasks with reduced resources. As it has become apparent that despite smaller cuts than in most other areas, there is a greater need in the areas of sport and culture, Mayor Elke Kahr is reallocating 150,000 euros each for the independent scene and for popular sport in order to help safeguard these areas."

An extra 150,000 euros for grassroots sport brings a slight sigh of relief to the sports scene. However, this is unlikely to calm the waters in the "battle between sport and culture", especially as the independent cultural scene, which is already significantly better funded than grassroots sport, receives the same extra amount. 

Incidentally, according to information from the sports office, the city of Graz is below the Austrian average in terms of sports expenditure per resident (33 euros per person/average in Austria: 35.75 euros). This means that only if the sports budget were increased by 2.75 euros per resident, which would amount to 825,000 euros, would the city of Graz be in line with the Austrian average.