As 2019 comes to a close, we take a step back to reflect on how God has blessed the ministry and the coaches and athletes it serves worldwide. This year, FCA marked 65 years of staying true to the mission of leading every coach and athlete into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and His church.
“The entire Fellowship of Christian Athletes family is thankful for the opportunities to do sports ministry every day,” said FCA President and CEO Shane Williamson. “Through our staff and leaders around the globe, we engage, equip and empower coaches and athletes to share the Gospel in all corners of the world. As our ministry continues to expand, we give all of the glory to God. For more than 65 years, we’ve rallied our team around the Great Commission and put God’s Word at the forefront of our plans. As we step back and review our past year, we’re humbled at what God has done.”
FCA experienced tremendous growth and record-setting numbers in reaching approximately 2 million coaches and athletes as it ministered “To and Through the Coach” internationally. While the ministry is more about touching the lives of coaches and athletes—one heart at a time—these figures show the incredible impact God has made through FCA.
Key Highlights:
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65 years ago, FCA was officially chartered on Nov. 10, 1954, in Norman, Oklahoma, after a young basketball coach named Don McClanen had a vision for a sports ministry seven years earlier.
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50,577 people made faith decisions for Christ through a variety of FCA events, including Huddles, Camps, Fields of Faith and more. FCA can now capture more faith decisions through a new Faith Response Tool, a texting system that will allow FCA staff, coaches and athletes to share these significant, life-changing decisions.
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FCA has exploded across the globe with ministry in 92 countries with 298 leaders being engaged, equipped and empowered to reach coaches and athletes.
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FCA continued to grow Bible engagement efforts through its YouVersion Bible reading app partnership. The ministry currently has 51 reading plans with over 879,366 plan completions since launching in 2013.
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For the immensely impactful and successful 2019 Camps season, FCA welcomed 89,323 coaches and athletes who attended 805 Camps in 42 states across the country and 92 nations around the world this summer—nearly double the number of countries with FCA Camps last year. At these Camps, 20,526 made faith decisions for Christ.
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FCA completed its 16th annual student-led and student-driven Fields of Faith events on Oct. 9, where 242,574 student-athletes, coaches, parents and community members worshipped together, heard from inspiring speakers, prayed and committed to read their Bible at 500 gatherings on athletic fields in the U.S. and globally.
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Globally, FCA reached coaches and athletes through 20,849 Huddles—nearly 19,000 in the U.S. and almost 2,000 internationally.
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FCA distributed 190,832 Bibles this year and has distributed 2.5 million Bibles around the world in the past 15 years.
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FCA trained a total of 1,461 participants in its various training opportunities.
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FCA excitedly released “The FOUR,” a simple, relevant, repeatable way to clearly communicate the Gospel using visual icons to engage coaches and athletes in today’s society. Its simplicity also makes it highly effective to equip and empower others to share their faith.
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Fellowship of Christian Athletes has 13 consecutive 4-Star top ratings from Charity Navigator, America’s largest organization rating the fiscal management of charities. This puts FCA in the top 1% of all charities rated. As a faith-funded ministry, FCA gives thanks to the Lord for His provision. FCA achieved a record year of $154.8 million in revenue.
View a timeline of Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ 65-year history here, including videos, quotes, articles, leader profiles, Camp themes, photos and more.