At the beginning of the year, jiu-jitsu instructional giant BJJ Fanatics revealed plans to start a fund to help keep BJJ gyms from closing due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company announced that they would also be kickstarting the fund with a $25,000 donation of their own.
Now, the fund is officially live, with the initial $25,000 donation already included in the fundraising effort. As stated on the fundraising page, “Your donation is going to a tax-exempt organization qualified under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended, which was established to save as many BJJ schools as possible during this pandemic. Your donation to The BJJ Fanatics Fund is tax-deductible and will go towards a general pool of money being raised to help those businesses chosen as part of The BJJ Fanatics Fund campaign (but will not be earmarked for any particular jiu jitsu school within that group).”
In a post announcing the launch of the fund, BJJ Fanatics co-founder Michael Zenga acknowledged that the effort was “a blatant knockoff” of the Barstool Fund, which was started by Barstool Sports to help small businesses through the pandemic. The BJJ Fanatics Fund, of course, will be specifically dedicated to helping jiu-jitsu academies.
You can donate to the fund here.
