The Browns are being nationally recognized for their transformative efforts in the community centered around youth football participation, educational advancement and equitable opportunities across Northeast Ohio.
ESPN announced on June 29 the Browns are one of the finalists for the ESPY's Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year Award. The Sports Humanitarian Awards will be held on July 14 and recognizes changemakers that are using the power of sports to uplift communities.
The Browns are one of those changemakers.
"Being named a finalist for the ESPN Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year Award is a tremendous honor that reflects the dedication of everyone involved from our staff, our players, our partners, and most importantly, the communities we serve," said Managing and Principal Partners Dee and Jimmy Haslam. "Our family is so proud to call Northeast Ohio home and more motivated than ever to continue investing in the young people who make this region so special."
The Haslam and Johnson families have played a direct and sustained role in shaping the Browns' community impact strategy, particularly through investments in youth sports, education and equitable access to opportunities across Northeast Ohio. Since making Cleveland their home, the families have prioritized creating long-term community resources that support student development both on and off the field.
Through the vision of the Haslam and Johnson families and Browns Give Back, the Browns launched the field projects initiative in 2016 with an initial commitment to install five synthetic turf fields in Cleveland Metropolitan School District schools. From the beginning, the initiative required coordinated collaboration between school leadership and Browns Give Back, working in alignment to identify schools, design field spaces and ensure each project met both athletic and educational needs. The impact of the initiative resonated with two organizations the Browns align with, Ohio CAT and ForeverLawn, who each recognized the impact of community investments and partnered with the Browns to continue the progress of the field projects.
That commitment has since expanded to 19 field projects across Northeast Ohio, representing one of the largest and longest-running youth sports infrastructure initiatives led by an NFL organization.
Designed as an "outdoor classroom," these fields are integrated into daily student life to support extracurricular programming, physical activity and school engagement. Schools have leveraged these spaces to strengthen attendance, student motivation and overall success. This project epitomizes the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network and Browns Give Back vision to impact education and youth football in the community. Launched in 2019 by the Cleveland Browns Foundation, Ohio Department of Education and Workforce and Harvard's Proving Ground, the Stay in the Game! Attendance Network, managed by Battelle, works together to campaign, connect and convene with experts and supporters to dramatically improve attendance. In 2025, the Browns improved attendance for 612,000 total students statewide among 239 school districts.
For many schools, the turf installations have restored access to reliable home fields for the first time in years. Previously, teams often practiced on inconsistent or unsafe surfaces, including poorly maintained fields or public parks with limited resources. The new turf fields have significantly reduced maintenance burdens for school staff while increasing usability, allowing multiple sports teams, bands, cheerleading squads, youth football programs and organizations to share and benefit from the same spaces.
Haslam Sports Group recognizes that youth sports provide more than athletic development. Participation in sports teaches leadership, accountability, teamwork and perseverance while also promoting physical and mental wellness. This belief has guided the organization's investments in safe, accessible athletic spaces and year-round youth programming opportunities. The organization has invested more than $23 million in youth football initiatives since 2014, contributing to a 163 percent increase in youth football participation across the region since 2020.
Beyond infrastructure, the Browns activate these spaces through year-round programming including LEGENDS Clinics, Rookie Tackle and girls flag football initiatives, creating pathways for more than 30,000 young people to engage with the sport.
Since launching in 2018, LEGENDS Clinics have engaged more than 5,000 participants across Northeast Ohio. The clinics bring together Browns alumni and local high school coaches to provide football instruction, mentorship and positive youth engagement opportunities. These clinics are intentionally hosted within the communities where the Browns have installed fields, helping strengthen relationships between youth athletes and their feeder high schools while creating sustainable participation pipelines for local football programs.
The Browns have played a leading role in partnering with 19 local leagues to implement Rookie Tackle throughout Northeast Ohio, making them the only NFL team to do so within their local market. The Browns worked with USA Football to develop Rookie Tackle, which is a modified version of the game designed to introduce tackle football to young athletes as part of the Youth Football Player Development Pathway, serving as a bridge between flag football and traditional 11-player tackle football.
Their leadership also helped advance the growth of girls high school flag football across Ohio, culminating approval as a state championship sport in July 2025 and statewide varsity sanctioning in 2026.
Their community efforts extend to other members of the organization, including Browns' players and staff.
In 2025, the Browns achieved a 99 percent participation rate among active roster players in at least one community appearance, reflecting the organization's strong culture of community engagement. The organization works closely with players to identify causes they care about and provides resources, logistical support and amplification to help maximize their charitable efforts. Whether through youth football, education initiatives, health and wellness programming or social impact campaigns, players are given opportunities to authentically engage with the community in ways that are meaningful to them. Players are also actively involved in the organization's field projects, participating in groundbreaking ceremonies, unveilings, and youth football events hosted at the completed fields. These opportunities allow players to connect directly with young athletes and reinforce the importance of access to safe, high-quality athletic facilities. By involving players in initiatives that create lasting community impact, the organization helps position them for success both on and off the field.
Through the Browns' First and Ten volunteer movement, the organization also encourages staff members, fans and community members to commit to 10 hours of volunteer service annually. The initiative is designed to create a culture of service and civic engagement across Northeast Ohio, beginning internally with Browns staff members. In 2025, 100 percent of Browns staff members completed at least 10 volunteer hours during the season.
Through strategic investment, innovative programming and a sustained commitment to community partnership, the Browns continue to demonstrate how a professional sports organization can create lasting opportunities for young people and strengthen communities for generations to come.
"When we launched the field projects initiative in 2016, we wanted to make a meaningful investment into the communities across Northeast Ohio that deserve so much," said President Dave Jenkins. "Seeing schools, youth leagues and communities come to these fields as a place where they can play, learn and come together reminds us just how important it is to create spaces that are safe and accessible to everyone. We are proud of what this initiative has grown to from five to 19 fields and couldn't be more grateful to the communities of Northeast Ohio for making these spaces their own."
The Cleveland Browns focus on advancing education, youth football and equitable opportunities across Northeast Ohio and beyond. For more information, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback and follow @BrownsGiveBack.
