Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship

What Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship does

Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE Global) is a US-based nonprofit organization founded in 2002 that operates a global competition platform for teenage entrepreneurs. Its core offering is a tiered competition system: country-level SAGE National Competitions feed top teams into the annual SAGE World Cup, an international event where teenage founders are judged by panels of business leaders on innovation, social impact, and business success. The organization also provides coaching, mentorship, and educational resources covering business report writing, annual reports, accounting, and presentation skills to support participating teams.

SAGE Global does not sell a technology product; its platform is operational rather than software-based. The organization distributes its programs through a decentralized network of country-level National Coordinators who manage local qualifiers, and registers participants for the World Cup via online forms with payment processed through PayPal, credit card, and bank transfer. The technology stack is minimal: a Wix-hosted marketing website, Google Forms for registration, and volunteer-led web development.

The revenue model is event-driven and supplemental. SAGE generates income primarily through World Cup delegate fees, with a two-tier structure — Official Delegates pay $380 USD and Unofficial Delegates pay $1,500 USD, both covering accommodation, meals, ground transport, and event access. A secondary stream consists of charitable donations collected via PayPal. The organization is volunteer-led across its C-suite and director ranks (the CEO, COO, and most directors hold other full-time positions at companies such as MCR Technologies, Tedu, Beachbody, and Haas Automation), which keeps payroll costs minimal. Governance is provided by a Board of Directors chaired by Peter Fagen, and the organization reports a 30+ country, 5-continent footprint.

Name

Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship

Legal name

Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship

Website

https://sageglobal.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

SAGE Global is a US-based nonprofit that runs a global competition platform empowering teenage entrepreneurs to launch social-impact businesses, with programs in 30+ countries and an annual World Cup judged by business leaders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Entrepreneurship Education

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Entrepreneurship, Business & Innovation Camps (EDAMALAL), Higher Education Capacity Building & Scholarships (BPADAKAG)

Keywords

• Youth entrepreneurship education
• Student business competitions
• Entrepreneurship training programs
• Global youth development
• Social enterprise competitions

Headquarters

HQ city

Roseville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Competition Delegate Fees: SAGE generates revenue through delegate fees charged to participants attending the SAGE World Cup competition. Official delegates pay $380 USD while unofficial delegates pay $1,500 USD, with fees covering accommodation, meals, ground transport, and event access.
2. Donations: The organization accepts charitable donations through PayPal to support the SAGE mission of empowering teenage entrepreneurs globally.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE Global) is a nonprofit organization that empowers teenage entrepreneurs through structured entrepreneurship competitions and educational programs. Its core offering centers on the SAGE World Cup—an annual international competition where teen-led businesses are judged on innovation, social impact, and business success—supported by national-level competitions, coaching, mentorship, and educational resources.

Product overview

SAGE (Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship) operates as a non-profit organization focused on empowering teenage entrepreneurs through structured competition programs. The organization does not offer a technology product or software platform. Instead, its core offerings consist of competitive programs: the SAGE World Cup (an international competition), USA Competition (national-level competition), and associated Resources for participants. The programs enable teen entrepreneurs to showcase businesses, receive mentorship, and compete for recognition based on innovation, social impact, and business success. The organization operates across 30+ countries on five continents, connecting teens, educators, and business leaders through coaching, mentorship, and global competitions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SAGE World Cup: International competition where top teen entrepreneurs showcase their businesses to a global audience
• SAGE National Competitions

Products and services

• SAGE World Cup The flagship international competition where top teen entrepreneurs from around the world showcase their businesses to a global audience. Teams compete for recognition and prizes, judged on innovation, social impact, and business success by an esteemed panel of experts. Official delegates pay $380 USD; unofficial delegates pay $1,500 USD.
• USA Competition National-level entrepreneurship competition for teen entrepreneurs in the United States, serving as a pathway to the World Cup. The top two businesses from the U.S. competition qualify to compete at the annual SAGE World Cup.
• Competition Resources Educational materials, judging criteria, and support resources provided to participants preparing for SAGE competitions. Includes tools for business report writing, annual report preparation, accounting, and oral presentation coaching.

Quantifiable outcome

• Teenage entrepreneurs learn essential skills including business report writing, annual report preparation, and accounting through SAGE competition preparation

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Golden Path Academics Vietnam (GPA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Golden Path Academics Vietnam (GPA) is the host organization for the 2026 SAGE World Cup in Hanoi, Vietnam. Founded in 2012, GPA offers personal development, college readiness, and admission counseling programs that help students achieve long-term successes at school, career, and life.
• VinUniversity (VinUni)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026VinUniversity is a private, not-for-profit university established by Vingroup - the largest private conglomerate in Vietnam. VinUni aspires to become a university of excellence with a mission to develop talents for the future. The university serves as the venue host for the 2026 SAGE World Cup.
• Education Revolution AssociationflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Education Revolution Association is a Gold-level sponsor of SAGE Global for 2025. They support entrepreneurship education and the organization's mission of empowering teenage entrepreneurs globally.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Junior Achievement: The largest global youth entrepreneurship education organization, operating in 100+ countries. Directly comparable mission (K-12 entrepreneurship programs), competition formats (JA Company of the Year), and National Office network — but at materially greater scale and resources.
• Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE): US-focused nonprofit teaching entrepreneurship to youth, particularly from low-income communities, with classroom curricula and pitch competitions. Closely comparable target audience, competition-driven model, and educational content on business plan writing and accounting.
• DECA: International student organization preparing emerging leaders for careers in business, with high-school-level competitive events judged on innovation and entrepreneurship. Directly comparable in audience (high-school students), competition format, and judging criteria around business innovation.
• Enactus: Global nonprofit mobilizing student teams to create entrepreneurial projects with social impact, with annual world cup competitions in 30+ countries. Most directly comparable to SAGE: social-impact focus, country-level competitions feeding into a World Cup, and student-team business model.
• Technovation: Global tech entrepreneurship program for girls and young women, running an annual competition (Technovation World Summit) with team-based venture creation. Comparable in audience (youth), competition-driven GTM, and global footprint, with a stronger technology and gender-equity focus.
• BizWorld Foundation: Nonprofit delivering entrepreneurship curricula and competition experiences to elementary and middle-school students worldwide. Closely comparable in mission and competition-driven engagement model, though targeting a younger age band than SAGE.

Broad incumbents

• 4-H: Largest US youth development organization with entrepreneurship and civic engagement programs running through local clubs and county extension offices. Comparable youth-development audience and program portfolio, but with broader scope (agriculture, STEM, civic engagement) rather than entrepreneurship specialization.
• Ashoka U: Higher-education-focused offshoot of Ashoka supporting social entrepreneurship curricula and student venture creation across universities. Comparable social-entrepreneurship focus but anchored at university rather than teen level.

Regional players

• Global Citizen Year: Nonprofit delivering leadership and social-impact fellowship programming for youth across multiple geographies. Comparable youth social-impact orientation and global network, though fellowship-based rather than competition-based.

Emerging players

• Venture For America: Nonprofit fellowship and training program for recent graduates pursuing entrepreneurship in US cities. Comparable audience (young aspiring entrepreneurs) and training/mentorship model, though targets post-college rather than high-school and runs in a single national market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/sageglobal2002
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/student-for-the-advancement-of-global-entrepreneurship-sage-/?viewAsMember=true
• Instagraminstagram.com/officialsageglobal
• Xx.com/sageglobal2002

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship