Stadtsportbund Köln e.V.

What Stadtsportbund Köln e.V. does

Stadtsportbund Köln e.V. (SSBK) is a registered non-profit association (eingetragener Verein) operating as the official umbrella organization for approximately 650 sports clubs in Cologne, Germany, representing more than 345,000 individual members. The organization is headquartered at the Haus des Kölner Sports facility on Ulrich-Brisch-Weg 1 and operates with a staff of roughly ten employees under Chairman Helmut Schaefer. Its core service portfolio is bifurcated: B2B services for member clubs — including organizational consulting (Vereinsberatung), administration of public funding programs (Moderne Sportstätte NRW, Digitalisierung des Breitensports), training and qualification programs, and a volunteer/job exchange (Ehrenamtsbörse) — and B2C services for active individuals, primarily the SportInKöln mobile app for club discovery, club search functionality, and coordination of the German Sports Badge (Sportabzeichen) certification program including an adapted version for athletes with disabilities. The organization also convenes thematic initiatives across inclusion, integration, youth development, and Olympic/Paralympic bid support.

The underlying technology stack is modest: the principal digital asset is the SportInKöln App, a directory-style mobile application available on iOS and Android that allows users to search sports offerings by sport type and location. No public API, SDK, or third-party integrations were disclosed. Affiliated initiatives include the Allianz Kölner Sport network and the youth-focused Sportjugend Köln, the latter operating under SSBK's organizational umbrella.

The business model is non-commercial: SSBK is financed through member-club dues, public subsidies (primarily channeled via Landessportbund NRW, the state-level sports federation), project-based grants, and small per-certification fees for the German Sports Badge. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed. The go-to-market motion is community-led — services are delivered directly to member clubs and active individuals through the headquarters office, the website, the mobile app, and recurring community events such as the "Tag des Sports für Alle."

Name

Stadtsportbund Köln e.V.

Legal name

Stadtsportbund Köln e.V.

Website

https://ssbk.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Stadtsportbund Köln e.V. is the official non-profit umbrella organization for approximately 650 sports clubs in Cologne, Germany, representing over 345,000 individual members. It delivers club consulting, public funding administration, the SportInKöln mobile app, and Sportabzeichen certification services to member clubs and active residents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Labor Unions and Similar Labor Organizations (81393)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Amateur Sport Governing Bodies & Federations (National/Regional) (MPAKACAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Local Amateur Clubs & Community Sports Organizations (MPAKACAE)

Keywords

• Sports association services
• Club consulting
• Sports development
• Community sports programs
• Sports umbrella organization

Headquarters

HQ city

Köln

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership fees and organizational services: The organization serves as an umbrella organization for sports clubs, providing services including consulting, funding support, and sports badge certification for a fee

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Stadtsportbund Köln e.V. acts as the official umbrella association for approximately 650 sports clubs in Cologne (345,000+ total members). It delivers club-facing services including consulting, funding program administration (e.g., Moderne Sportstätte NRW, Digitalisierung des Breitensports), training and qualification, and a volunteer/job exchange, alongside consumer-facing offerings such as the SportInKöln mobile app, club search, and coordination of the German Sports Badge (Sportabzeichen) program.

Product overview

Stadtsportbund Köln e.V. operates as an umbrella organization for approximately 650 sports clubs with over 345,000 members in Cologne. The organization offers a portfolio of services including the SportInKöln mobile app for discovering sports offerings, the German Sports Badge (Sportabzeichen) testing and certification program including an adapted version for people with disabilities, club consulting and funding services, a volunteer/job exchange platform (Ehrenamtsbörse), membership administration, club search functionality, training and qualification programs, and digitization support for mass sports. The SportInKöln App serves as the primary digital product for connecting sports enthusiasts with local clubs, while the remaining services focus on organizational support, community development, and sports promotion across Cologne.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SportInKöln App: Mobile application helping users find sports offers and clubs in Cologne, launched with financial support from 1. FC Köln
• Allianz Kölner Sport

Products and services

• SportInKöln App Mobile application that helps sports enthusiasts find sports offerings, courses, and clubs in Cologne, search by sport type or location, and view schedules and venues.
• Sportabzeichen (German Sports Badge)

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Allianz Kölner SportcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA network of clubs and institutions from recreational, competitive, professional, and health sports operating under the leadership of Stadtsportbund Köln. The alliance brings together diverse sports stakeholders to support Cologne's sports development and Olympic/Paralympic bid initiatives.
• Sportjugend KölncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYouth sports organization affiliated with Stadtsportbund Köln, focused on promoting sports among children and adolescents. Led by Anja Hogrefe as chair.
• 1. FC KölnminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor Cologne sports club that provided financial support for the launch of the SportInKöln app.
• Landessportbund NRW e.V.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerState-level sports federation to which Stadtsportbund Köln belongs, providing organizational framework and support for sports development in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Urban Sports Club: Commercial sports-discovery and corporate-wellness platform active across major German cities. Competes with SSBK's SportInKöln app for end-user sports discovery, particularly among urban professionals.

Direct peers

• Stadtsportbund München: City-level sports umbrella for Munich sports clubs, providing the same combination of club services, Sportabzeichen coordination and advocacy to a comparable urban membership base.
• Stadtsportbund Düsseldorf: Direct city-level peer Stadtsportbund for Düsseldorf, offering the same club-consulting, funding and Sportabzeichen services to local sports clubs. Functionally and structurally equivalent to SSBK Köln within NRW.

Broad incumbents

• Sportjugend im Landessportbund NRW: State-level youth sports organization within Landessportbund NRW, structurally analogous to SSBK's affiliate Sportjugend Köln.
• Deutscher Olympischer Sportbund (DOSB): National umbrella for German organized sport, coordinating Olympic/Paralympic activities and the Sportabzeichen programme at federal level. SSBK is an indirect member via Landessportbund NRW.
• Landessportbund Nordrhein-Westfalen: State-level sports federation of North Rhine-Westphalia, to which SSBK belongs as a city member. Operates the same umbrella/funding/qualification model across all NRW city sport federations.
• Deutscher Behindertensportverband (DBS): National federation administering the adapted German Sports Badge for people with disabilities. Operates the same Sportabzeichen-for-disability service SSBK delivers locally in Cologne.

Regional players

• 1. FC Köln: Major professional Bundesliga club headquartered in Cologne and a strategic partner of SSBK. Overlaps with SSBK at the grassroots/community sports layer and contributes funding for shared initiatives like the SportInKöln app.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stadtsportbund-k%C3%B6ln-ev

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Stadtsportbund Köln e.V.