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Grassroots sports clubs predict a bleak future - 29/05/08 Only 64 per cent of grassroots sports clubs that answered a new survey believe their club will still be running in five years' time. And nearly nine out of ten clubs are suffering from a lack of funding, with more than half relying on money from players to keep going. These shocking results have been revealed in a new survey by Sportstation.co.uk, a service for clubs to set up a professional website totally free of charge. The business was started by keen sports fan Nick Tulloch. He said: "It's horrendous to discover that grassroots clubs which rely on goodwill and volunteers to keep going, could be facing a real funding crisis in the next few years. "To find that so many are relying on money from players' pockets, especially at a time when people are being hurt by the credit crunch and wobbly economy, is worrying. Many communities across Britain would not be the same if they lost some of these clubs." Sportstation surveyed 54 grassroots football, bowls, cricket and cycling clubs across the UK. The main findings were: Half of clubs find it difficult to attract players Only 64% of respondents think their club will exist in 5 years time 27% don't have a stable cash flow into their club 56% rely on players for funding 89% feel that grassroots sports is suffering due to a lack of funding When asked about the facilities they have, a third rated them as average, with six per cent believing they were poor or awful. Another third felt the players at their club didn't have the facilities available to reach their full playing potential. 100% of respondents felt it was important in some way for the club to have a website, with 22% saying it was vital. Just under 90% of those currently with a website believed it helped them get more interaction with players and fans.