Rugby here runs on people who chip in
Money, time, or a business willing to put its name on a jersey. All three keep players on the field in Santa Barbara County, and the club needs all three.
Give to SBRFC
The Santa Barbara Rugby Football Club is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, EIN 93-4659131. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
A gift to SBRFC is a gift to rugby in this county rather than to one team. It goes to what decides whether a club stays competitive rather than merely surviving: recruiting and keeping local players, coaching, and club infrastructure. It also goes straight to individual players, because SBRFC covers season dues for anyone who cannot, and backs scholarship places in the youth club.
NOTE: Our giving page runs on Zeffy, a fundraising service that is free to the club. At checkout Zeffy pre-fills an optional tip, 15% by default, about $15 on a $100 gift and $75 on a $500 one. That tip goes to Zeffy, not SBRFC, and it is not required. To skip it, click the tip box, choose Other, and enter $0.
Other ways to give
- By check
- Payable to Santa Barbara Rugby Football Club, mailed to 2516 Mesa School Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 93109
- By conversation
- Pledges, donor-advised funds, stock gifts and multi-year giving: email treasurer@sbrfc.com
The '78 Club
The '78 Club is the legacy donor program, named for the year rugby started in this town. It is built for former players, families and supporters who want to give at a level that underwrites a season rather than a match, and it is where the most committed giving sits.
Members are recognized on the club's patron wall, and gifts at every tier fund the same things: player recruitment and retention, coaching, and the infrastructure that keeps a club competitive.
- Supporters' Union
- $350 and above per year
- Second XV
- $750 and above per year
- Founders' XV
- $2,500 and above per year
To pledge, ask questions, or arrange a giving conversation, email treasurer@sbrfc.com. Full details of the program, including the patron wall, are on the Grunion site at grunionrugby.com/the-78-club.
Give time instead
Amateur rugby is held together by people doing unpaid jobs badly needed and rarely noticed. If you have a few hours, the clubs can use them.
- Match day. Setting up and breaking down pitches, running the sideline, keeping time and score, working the gate at home fixtures.
- Youth support. Team management and touchline supervision for the Stingrays age groups. Volunteer requirements are handled through the youth club.
- Events. The autumn kick-off, fundraisers, socials and the third half after home matches.
- Behind the scenes. Photography, social media, newsletter, grant writing, bookkeeping and anything else a small non-profit needs and cannot afford to buy.
You do not need to have played rugby to be useful here. Referees, team managers and volunteers can sign up on the coach and volunteer page, which also has the Grunion's paid head coach job.
Put your business behind a local team
Local sponsorship is what lets the clubs hold player costs down. Sponsors are named on kit, on the sideline, at socials and on the clubs' sites, and they are genuinely part of the season rather than a logo in a footer.
The Grunion currently run front-of-shirt, kit partner, beer sponsor and social sponsor packages, and the Stingrays run club partner, kit partner and community partner packages alongside scholarship support for youth players. Packages, prices and an inquiry form are on the sponsorship page.
Current club sponsors include Baja Sharkeez, Rincon Brewery and Golden Rooster Transportation.
To talk about sponsorship, email treasurer@sbrfc.com.
Every gift stays in Santa Barbara
SBRFC is a volunteer-run club. What comes in goes back out to coaching, recruitment, club costs and dues assistance for players in this county.