Key Takeaways
- The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation becomes a new national partner of Children’s Miracle Network, opening with a pilot that supports four children’s hospitals in the network.
- Funding will target sports medicine programs, adaptive sports, rehabilitation services, and access-to-play initiatives across participating hospitals.
- The partnership frames sports, movement, and play as tools for recovery and well-being, not only recreation.
- Marriott made the introduction that connected the two organizations.
- Children’s Miracle Network has operated for more than 40 years, raising funds for children’s hospitals across the U.S. and Canada.
Children’s Miracle Network announced on June 30 that the DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation has joined as a new national partner, with a stated focus on helping children access sports, play, and sports-based treatment during their care.
The relationship starts as a pilot. The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation will provide support to four children’s hospitals within the Children’s Miracle Network system, with the goal of expanding programs that use physical activity and play to support children’s health.
What the Partnership Funds
The two organizations plan to help hospitals fund several specific program types: sports medicine, adaptive sports, rehabilitation services, and access-to-play initiatives. Each category ties physical activity directly to a child’s recovery rather than treating it as a separate amenity.
That distinction matters for operators watching where corporate sports dollars are flowing. The funding is structured around clinical and developmental outcomes, strength, confidence, and rehabilitation, rather than sponsorship visibility or event activation. For a brand foundation rooted in sporting goods retail, it places the company’s giving inside a healthcare setting.
Why Two National Brands Framed It Around Play
Both organizations used their leaders to make the case directly.
“We are grateful to welcome the DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation as a new national partner and excited to explore how movement and play can bring strength, confidence and joy to more families throughout their care journeys,” said Aimee Daily, Ph.D., President and CEO of Children’s Miracle Network.
From the foundation side, the message centered on access. “Every child deserves the opportunity to experience the positive impact of sports and movement,” said Rick Jordan, Vice President of the DICK’S Foundation. Jordan added that the partnership aims to bring the comfort and healing benefits of play to children facing medical challenges.
The language from both sides stays close to the pilot’s purpose. Neither organization detailed funding figures or a timeline for expanding beyond the four hospitals.
How the Two Organizations Connected
Children’s Miracle Network credited Marriott for introducing the foundation to the organization. That detail is worth noting for anyone tracking how corporate partnerships in this space actually form. The connection came through an existing brand relationship rather than a direct pitch, a reminder that introductions inside established partner networks still drive a meaningful share of new deals.
Children’s Miracle Network positioned the announcement as part of its broader growth as a nonprofit partner for national brands. The organization unites donors, corporate partners, and fundraising programs to raise funds for children’s hospitals, with each dollar benefiting the local hospital where it is raised.
A Pilot Built to Prove Sports Belongs in Pediatric Care
The four-hospital structure gives this partnership a clear test. Rather than launching a broad national program, the foundation and Children’s Miracle Network are starting small enough to measure how sports medicine, adaptive sports, and access-to-play programs perform inside a hospital environment. The results of that pilot will likely shape whether the model extends to more of the network’s hospitals.
For the youth sports industry, the partnership is a signal of where the category’s definition is widening. Sports and play are being funded as part of children’s healthcare, expanding the audience for access-to-play programs beyond clubs, leagues, and recreational settings into clinical recovery. How the four pilot hospitals report outcomes will determine whether more brands follow the same path.
Source: Children’s Miracle Network, June 30, 2026, https://cmn.org/who-we-are/news-stories/childrens-miracle-network-welcomes-dicks-sporting-goods-foundation-as-new-national-partner/
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