Aragón opens the 400,000 euro call for high-performance athletes

The Government of Aragon has opened the call for grants intended for Aragonese individuals with the status of high-performance athletes, their technical staff, and those performing refereeing duties in absolute category international competitions. The call is approved by Order PJC/1429/2026, of September 21, published in the Official Gazette of Aragon number 195, of October 7, 2026, with official reference BOA20261007015. The summary of the call also appears in the announcements section of the same gazette, with reference BOA20261007018 and identification number BDNS 922410.

Regulatory Framework and Background

The order is issued under article 71.52.ª of the Statute of Autonomy of Aragon and article 17.1.b) of Law 16/2018, of December 4, on physical activity and sport in Aragon, which empowers the Autonomous Community to promote the increase of high-performance sport through grants and subsidies. The procedure is processed as a simplified competitive process, in accordance with article 16.3.b) of the consolidated text of the Grants Law of Aragon, approved by Legislative Decree 2/2023, of May 3.

The grants are part of line number 5 of the Strategic Grant Plan of the Department of Education, Culture and Sport 2025-2027, titled “Grants for qualified level athletes.” They are governed by the bases of Order ECD/978/2025, of August 1 (Official Gazette of Aragon number 155, of August 13, 2025), modified by Order ECD/1674/2025, of November 20, and by Order ECD/516/2026, of March 20. The order bears the signature of the Vice President and Councilor for Presidency, Justice, Culture and Sport, María del Mar Vaquero Perianez.

Budget and Distribution

The call is endowed with a maximum amount of 400,000 euros, charged to the budgetary application 18080 G/4571/480114/91002 of the 2024 budget extended for 2026. The distribution is as follows:

• 99% (396,000 euros) for Aragonese high-performance athletes and their technical staff.
• 1% (4,000 euros) for international refereeing staff.

Eligible beneficiaries may include non-professional Aragonese high-performance athletes with an Aragonese federative license from 2025 and accredited sporting merit in that year; the Aragonese technical staff of those athletes, with Aragonese administrative residency and a 2025 license; and refereeing staff with Aragonese residency who have refereed official absolute international competitions in 2025. Only one grant will be awarded per beneficiary.

Scale and Instructing Body

The assessment is carried out separately for each group. The athletes’ score totals up to 80 points for sporting merits and characteristics of the modality and up to 20 points for activity in an Aragonese club, with a total maximum of 100 points. Technical staff receive 20% of the score of the athlete they train who has the highest score. Refereeing is scored as follows:

• 10 points for ten or more absolute international matches refereed in 2025.
• 5 points for between five and nine matches.
• 3 points for between one and four matches.

Instruction corresponds to the General Directorate of Sport, and the assessment to a commission chaired by the Head of the Facilities, Training and Sports Performance Service, with two technicians designated by the General Directorate.

Deadlines and resolution

The deadline for submitting applications is ten business days from the day following the publication of the summary in the Official Gazette of Aragon, exclusively through the standardized forms of the electronic office. The resolution will be issued by order of the competent department within a maximum period of three months from the end of the application period; if no express resolution is issued after this time, the applications are understood to be rejected. An optional appeal for reversal may be filed against the order within one month, or a contentious-administrative appeal within two months before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Aragon.

Impact on Aragonese sport

The call activates the main economic instrument available to Aragon to support its elite athletes, coaches, and international referees, and arrives with a very tight application deadline. Interested parties must gather the federative documentation and submit the application through the electronic processor before the ten-business-day deadline expires.

Source: Official Gazette of Aragon, number 195, of October 7, 2026, section III. Other Provisions and Agreements (official reference: BOA20261007015).