The first half of 2026 has marked a dynamic new chapter for the 2026-27 mandate of SHARE 2.0, a European Commission initiative designed to boost cooperation among sports stakeholders, including municipalities, federations, and grassroots organizations to drive local development through sport and physical activity.

As an active partner in the European sport ecosystem, the European University Sports Association (EUSA) is fully integrated into this journey. EUSA’s Director of Projects and Policy, Andrej Pisl, was appointed to the Steering Group for the Sports and Society Community of Practice (CoP), ensuring strong representation for university sports in shaping the strategic direction of the initiative for the current two-year period.

The year kicked off with a major governance refresh, establishing Steering Groups across all four SHARE 2.0 Communities of Practice. In late January 2026, a series of interactive roadmap planning workshops were held to finalize operational priorities through August 2026.

The first six months of 2026 have already seen key milestone activities and capacity-building events:
- Political Recognition (June 1): The SHARE 2.0 Green Sport Manifesto was officially recognized in the EU Council conclusions on sport tourism, urging sports organizations across Europe to sign the manifesto and commit to environmental sustainability.
- Innovation CoP (May 7): The session "Building AI literacy: Training sport organisations for the digital future" focused on introducing practical AI tools to the grassroots sector. This event was supported by a newly formed Working Group that mapped out European AI literacy frameworks.
- Health CoP (May 21): This webinar explored "The Global Physical Literacy (GloPL) Action Framework," bringing in global experts to discuss integrating physical literacy into public health and education systems.
- Green and Sustainable Sport CoP (June 18): This event addressed "Leveraging EU Funds for Sustainable Sport Infrastructure," offering municipalities and facility operators concrete guidance on overcoming administrative hurdles and preparing for the post-2027 EU funding period.
- Sport and Society CoP (June 25): EUSA partners hosted the webinar "From Experience to Opportunity: Leveraging Sport Volunteering for Transferable Skills Development," which tackled how to make volunteering more appealing by recognizing skills that translate beyond sport.

SHARE 2.0 is currently gathering data to shape its focus for the remainder of the 2026/2027 cycle. EUSA members and the wider sport community are warmly encouraged to fill out the two live CoP surveys, both open until July 22, 2026:
- SHARE 2.0 Survey Sport and Society CoP: Volunteering: Investigates volunteer profiles, systemic challenges, and modern trends like micro-volunteering.
- SHARE 2.0 Survey Health CoP: Knowledge of the health benefits of sport(s) and physical activity (PA): Assesses knowledge and practical integration of health-promoting physical activities within sports organizations.

The next major SHARE 2.0 event will be held on October 6 in Brussels, where the yearly conference will gather stakeholders to celebrate achievements and plan the next steps for European sport development.

For more information about the initiative, please see https://sport.ec.europa.eu/initiatives/share-20-initiative