Youth & Amateur Sports Grant Program and Michael Erin Busch Fund

Youth & Amateur Sports Grant Program and Michael Erin Busch Fund is sponsored by Maryland Sports Commission. This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

About the YASG & MEBF - Maryland Sports Commission Youth & Amateur Sports Grant Program and Michael Erin Busch Fund FY27 Grant Program Update: Application portals are now anticipated to open by mid-July 2026. Organizations with July or August events should review the Notice of Intent (NOI) process to establish eligibility during the transition period. Learn more: https://marylandsports.

us/grants-overview/fy27-grant-program-opening-and-event-eligibility/ The Youth and Amateur Sports Grant and Michael Erin Busch Fund (Grant & Fund) allows the Maryland Sport Commission to be more responsive, effective and efficient within the sport tourism and sports event industry for Maryland’s betterment.

The funds give Maryland Sports the ability to compete against the highest level of competitors in the industry while enriching our private sector event partners, rights holders and sports governing bodies, thus generating more revenues to and garnering more positive exposure for the State.

The highlights of the Grant & Fund: Allows Maryland to surpass our competitor set on a more even playing field regionally, nationally and internationally Allows TEAM Maryland to lead the sport tourism industry regionally, nationally and internationally Allows Maryland to generate more revenues and secure more opportunities through youth and amateur sports Allows Maryland Sports and TEAM Maryland to sustain and strengthen our well-earned reputation in the sport tourism industry A Champion for Youth and Amateur Sports For more than 30 years, Michael Erin Busch served the State of Maryland, and the people of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County, in the House of Delegates, earning the distinction of House Speaker in 2003, a position he held until his death in 2019.

During his more than four decades of public service, Speaker Busch served on numerous committees and subcommittees, including a role as Chair of the State Commission on Physical Fitness from 1989 to 1994. Born in Baltimore, and a near lifelong resident of Annapolis, Speaker Busch attended St. Mary’s High School, where he was a three sport athlete.

As a star football player, Busch was a recipient of the Rhodes Trophy, awarded to the best football player in Anne Arundel County by the Touchdown Club of Annapolis. Recruited to play football by Temple University, Busch was the starting running back on a 1967 team that boasted the top record in the Middle Atlantic Conference, and Busch led the conference in rushing yards while being named to the All Conference team as a sophomore.

As a junior, a severe knee injury put an end to his football playing career, and Busch pursued the passions that would become his legacy: education, coaching, and public service. Busch earned his degree in Education from Temple University, and spent a lifetime working in the public sector.

He spent his first few years after college teaching and coaching at his high school alma mater, and later at Meade High School in Anne Arundel County. In 1979, Busch was recruited to serve as an administrator for youth sports programs for the Department of Recreation and Parks Department for Anne Arundel County by then County Executive Bob Pascal. He remained with the department until 2018.

Over the course of nearly four decades working in government at the county and state level, Busch became a champion of youth sports, credited with improving facilities and programs around the county. He strongly supported gender equity in sports, executing the expansion of access and leveled playing fields to female athletes. In his free time, he was a volunteer coach and a referee for youth, high school, and community college sports.

He was affectionately known to many people – both young and old – as “Coach”. Busch’s two daughters, Megan and Erin, grew up playing youth sports in Anne Arundel County, and both played Division I Lacrosse at Coastal Carolina University and Stetson University, respectively. He is survived by his wife Cynthia.

In addition to being a champion for sports in Maryland, Busch received numerous awards and accolades for his work with families and young children. He was also an advocate for state parks, educational programs, and colleges and universities. Along with his wife and children, Busch was an avid follower of the arts, believing in greater access to and investment in programs that foster creativity.

His legacy continues to live on in Annapolis, as the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts was renamed the Michael E. Busch Center for the Arts and Maryland Hall, and the Annapolis Branch of the Anne Arundel County Library was named in his honor.

In 2020, the Maryland Legislature approved the Maryland Sports Commission Youth and Amateur Sports Grant and Michael Erin Busch Fund to honor the late Speaker of the House for his years as an advocate for, and his dedication to growing and expanding youth and amateur sports in the community.