Edinburgh is Scotland's Capital city and one of the most affluent cities in the United Kingdom.

It is a centre for culture and the arts, with its world famous Festivals, as well as for business, education and politics.

It is also, for the people who live here, a great sporting city.

A succession of stars have honed their skills here including Sir Andy Murray, Olympic legends Sir Chris Hoy and Katherine Grainger, and Scottish World Cup hero Claire Emslie.

Yet grassroots sport in the city is suffering. It is getting harder for young people to get involved. The cost of renting sports halls and pitches is rising dramatically, knocking some sports clubs out of action, while facilities are often primitive, poorly maintained or locked up at evenings and weekends.

As a result young players and their volunteer coaches regularly turn up to find their pitches are unplayable. 

Part of the problem is years of cuts to the budget of Edinburgh Leisure, which operates the city's public facilities. Edinburgh now spends less than half of what Glasgow does per visitor to its sports facilities. 

The city's sports clubs and the Edinburgh Evening News, which has championed its sports clubs for almost 150 years, now say enough is enough.

Please support our Sporting Chance campaign calling on the City of Edinburgh Council to work with the Scottish Government and other funding organisations including Sport Scotland and the NHS to deliver the following pledges for sport:

1. Cut the grass in public spaces and take it away!
2. No more reductions in the budget of Edinburgh Leisure and a commitment to look at reducing the cost of access to facilities
3. A commitment from the city council that there will be no net reduction in the space used for pitches and sports facilities across Edinburgh
4. If developers want land for other reasons, it should be mandatory for them to pay for, and construct, alternative facilities before any development happens
5. Every public pitch and other sporting facility to be maintained to an agreed standard by the council or in partnership with local clubs
6. Open up the school estate on trusted volunteer basis during holidays and at weekends (allow local voluntary clubs to work with schools to have access and care for facilities)