The 14 Wrestling Fundraiser Ideas You Need to Try

The sport of wrestling is one that can be enjoyed at any level. From the old barn your youth wrestling club outgrew to the vaunted Lorenzo Wrestling Complex at Penn State University.

It’s a demanding sport physically, mentally, and yes… financially. Singlets, warmups, gear bags, mats, even mat tape, it’s all expensive – even popular wrestling stats and video software like Matboss can still cost money.

How do you fundraise enough to not only fulfill your team’s needs, but also continue to grow your program?

There’s 14 traditional wrestling weight classes in high school, and so we’re bringing you one fundraising idea per weight class to help your program this year. We’ll start with the bigger heavy hitting fundraisers, and go down into the lightweights, the simpler lower return fundraisers that still should hold a place in your program.

Crowdfunding

Our first fundraiser is the most powerful. The heavyweight fundraiser. The fundraiser that 10 times out of 10 is the most effective fundraiser you can do. It’s digital crowdfunding. 

1. Effective
2. Long-Reaching
3. Easy

You set up your crowdfunding page. It takes just 10 minutes. We run through everything with a quick demo prior, so that you’re an expert. Add your team’s logo and fundraising statement. What are you fundraising for? Being clear cut about this helps drive in donations. 

These crowdfunding pages are easy to share via QR codes, over social media, emailing, and texting out. 

When you use Teamfi, we automate everything for you. We’ll even reach out to your contacts at no cost to you. Now what’s the cost to use Teamfi for fundraising? It’s free. That’s right, we don’t take a cut from your fundraiser.

Silent Auction at Banquets

At the end of the season, sports teams often get together at their school’s cafeteria, or somewhere relatively inexpensive to rent for a few hours. Parents bring some food potluck style and awards are handed out.

It’s a timeless tradition in communities across the country. Now, expand upon the opportunity to have all your program’s families in one room for a few hours.

A silent auction takes time. It takes work to get donations, print out silent auction sheets, and put everything out. Ultimately, silent auctions are inherently risky, like bumping  to a higher weight class. When done right though, they can be big winners.

Wrestling Golf Outing, Bowl-a-thon, or Cornhole Tournament

Three fun events where teams can register and compete. Three events where you can raise a lot of money for your wrestling team with the right coordination.

Golf Outing - You can check out our full beginning to end guide on how to run the perfect golf outing if it stands out, but golf outings are one of our favorite event based fundraisers we recommend to coaches. 

It’s not skill based. Almost anyone can compete in a golf outing and have fun. There’s a number of ways including hole sponsors, outing sponsors, and simple items like mulligan packs that can turn an already profitable fundraiser into a program changer. 

Bowl-a-Thon - Another fundraiser that we have a full guide on how to execute a profitable bowlathon fundraiser, this takes an indoor sport accessible to nearly everyone, and makes it into your own fun event. In a bowlathon, have your team create a pledge based bowling fundraiser through our pen and paper template or digital bowlathon software.

Cornhole Tournament - The simple bag based game gained popularity in 1980’s Cincinnati and since then, it’s taken over the country even being shown on ESPN.

It’s cost-effective, has universal appeal, and is simple to understand. Rent a space. Charge registration fees. Collect sponsors, offer prizes, and have fun!

You’re going to have to work hard for any of these, but the rewards can be great.

Weight Class Sponsorships

A core part of your wrestling team that is essential to your team’s lineup.

The only things you need are:

• Places to hang banners
• Social media to shout out weight class sponsors

Like any sponsorship program, this one is going to take a little work. Reach out to local businesses, parents, and community members. 

This is a sponsorship that gives businesses tremendous exposure over one of the longest sports seasons, wrestling seasons often last 3-4 months.

Getting businesses to spend $250 or $500 on these sponsorships, multiplied by 14, and that’s as much as $7,000 raised for your program.

Host Your Own Tournament

It’s not an easy task, hosting your own tournament, but it’s so worthwhile to your program.

Getting area kids to come to their home gym and watch wrestling, that’s priceless to a program. Now how is it a fundraiser? Having wrestling fans from around the state coming to your gym?

Any time you should host a tournament, you should be making money. One hundred percent. Ticket sales. Concessions. Any team fees to participate. 

Ask your local athletic director to help you get a wrestling tournament hosted, whether that’s at the youth, high school, or college level. 

Clinic with Alumni Wrestlers

A fundraiser and a way to make your program better! Invite successful alumni or college wrestlers to run a clinic for youth athletes. 

Usually run during the summertime, these clinics are usually 1 to 2 days long. Have a registration fee and include lunch.

It takes a little work and is a great middle of the road fundraiser with more benefits than money.

Let’s do a Lift-a-Thon

It’s the fundraiser that makes your team stronger, the liftathon. We offer a liftathon in a pen and paper version and a digital version. Each wrestler collects pledges for the weight they can lift in one session, usually the classic powerlifting bench, squat, and deadlift totals. If someone pledges ten cents a pound and the wrestler totals 500 pounds, that’s $50 raised.

Reeths-Puffer Wrestling raised nearly $10,000 in their liftathon.

Community Service Fundraiser

Have your wrestlers available for community service projects in exchange for donations. For example, you’ve got 20 wrestlers on your team. 

If you have them shovel an elderly woman’s driveway, you can knock it out in ten minutes. This is a service that people would donate to your program for.

It also gets your kids volunteer experience and they feel good about themselves.

Team Merchandise Sales

Selling custom gear is always a need and a way to generate funds. Create team-branded t-shirts, hoodies, hats, or even polos. These items become walking billboards for your program.

You can pre-order to avoid upfront costs, or work with an apparel company that prints on demand. Pair merchandise sales with big meets or rivalry duals to maximize sales.

Pro tip - You can sell sponsorships for the back of your team shirts, not uniforms though, that’s not allowed according to NFHS rules.

Want another a-thon idea that works? Sacred Heart Wrestling coaches did their own walkathon and raised over fifty grand. 

Restaurant Night Fundraiser

Partner with a local restaurant or pizza place that donates a percentage of sales back to your team. All you need to do is promote the night, and families will show up. These nights usually raise a few hundred dollars with almost no work from your side.

Wrestling Calendar Fundraiser

The calendar fundraiser is one of the simplest and most effective tools out there. Each day of the month is assigned a dollar amount. Day 1 equals $1, day 30 equals $30 and so on. Supporters pick their day(s), make the donation, and you watch the calendar fill up fast.

It’s visual, easy to run, and perfect for wrestlers to share with family, friends, and neighbors. A single month-long push can bring in a few thousand dollars with very little effort.

Coaches tell us all the time, digital fundraising makes their lives easier. Check out how Lowell Wrestling in Michigan raised five figures in the offseason. 

Raffle Fundraiser

Collect donated prizes like gift cards, gift baskets, or tickets and sell raffle tickets leading up to a home dual or banquet. If prizes are donated, there’s no cost to run it. Maybe just the cost of the raffle tickets themselves. A simple drawing perhaps at the midpoint of your next wrestling dual or in between matches, can bring in hundreds with almost no setup.

Bake Sale Fundraiser

The classic fundraiser. The bake sale. Yeah, there’s just a little work that goes into it, and ultimately, it’s not a high return fundraiser.

It’s a fun one though. Have a family, or multiple families, bake sweet treats and sell them at your next home match or tournament.

Fill My Wrestling Singlet

A lightweight and simple fundraiser that is a perfect way to get started.

Printable templates for wrestling teams are easy to find online. Just print them off and get started. These templates have spots for donors to write their name and donate that amount to your program. 

They’re very similar to our calendar fundraisers that coaches tell us raise four times what pen and paper templates do.

Alright, Let’s Start Fundraising

Fundraising doesn’t have to be overwhelming and we hope these 14 wrestling fundraiser ideas helped. The key is mixing quick-hit fundraisers like a bake sale with bigger annual efforts (like a digital crowdfunding campaign). When your community sees your wrestlers working hard on and off the mat, they’ll be eager to help.

With the right strategy, you’ll cover team costs, build team pride, and give your wrestlers the season they deserve. If you need help during your fundraising journey, we’re here for you. Sign up and learn how you can be our next five figure fundraiser, and the best part is you keep everything you raise.