Talent is everywhere. The support around it is not. We put it where it is missing.
01
Sport
We support talented young athletes who can’t get there on their own, with financial support, access to facilities, and a network of ambassadors and sports teams behind them.
We match young entrepreneurs with experienced mentors from the YOUNG network, turning ambition into a real business with guidance, knowledge and access to a wider network.
We are a collective of founders, board members and advisors who believe one thing: when young people get the right support, they move faster and further.
Progress rarely happens alone. It happens when the right people meet at the right moment, and someone chooses to open a door. That is the whole job: open the door, then stay in the room.
A donation here does not disappear into overheads. It pays for kit, fees and facilities, for running the mentor programme, and for the first costs that stop a young business before it starts.
YOUNG Foundation is the foundation behind the sport and entrepreneurship initiatives of the YOUNG ecosystem. We are not a company selling something. We are a collective of founders, board members and advisors who believe one thing: when young people get the right support, they move faster and further.
Some of the people we back are athletes who have the talent but not the budget, the facilities or the people around them. Some are entrepreneurs with an idea and nobody to call when the first hard decision arrives.
Progress rarely happens alone. It happens when the right people meet at the right moment, and someone chooses to open a door. That is the whole job: open the door, then stay in the room.
We are deliberately small. No layers, no committee between a young person and the answer they need. A short conversation, a decision, and then the work.
What we believe
Four thingswe hold to
01
Talent is everywhere
Opportunity is not. The difference between the two is usually money, facilities or one introduction nobody made.
02
Support beats charity
We are not handing out prizes. We back people who are already working, and we stay involved while they do it.
03
Sport teaches business
Discipline, losing well, showing up again tomorrow. Everything a founder needs is already taught on a pitch.
04
One network, shared
The YOUNG ecosystem is the asset. Access to it is what we are really giving away.
Part of YOUNG
The group behind the foundation
Where we sit
A foundation witha business behind it
YOUNG Foundation is part of YOUNG, an entrepreneurial group building companies across hospitality, media, workspaces and real estate. That matters for one practical reason: the mentors, the rooms, the events and the contacts a young person needs already exist inside the group.
Two programmes, run the same way: find people who are already working, remove what is blocking them, and stay close enough to be useful.
01 · Sport
Backing athleteswho can’t self-fund
Talent rarely fails on talent. It fails on the fees, the travel, the kit, the hours a job takes away from training. We cover the gap, and we put a network around it.
Starting is exciting. What follows is uncertainty, hard decisions and questions with no obvious answer. We match young entrepreneurs with people who have been through exactly that.
Our mentors are entrepreneurs and professionals from the YOUNG ecosystem who give their time and their contacts, not advice from a distance.
01
You apply
Tell us what you are building, or what you are training for, and where you are stuck. No business plan required.
02
We match
We pair you with someone who has already solved the problem you are facing, from the YOUNG network and beyond.
03
You meet, monthly
A standing session every month for six months, plus the messages in between that actually move things forward.
04
The door stays open
The programme ends. The relationship, the network and the introductions do not.
Why mentor
What you getout of it
Mentors tell us the same thing afterwards: it sharpened their own thinking. Explaining a decision to someone who has never made it is the fastest way to find out whether you still believe in it.
Secure checkout. Card, iDEAL and other local methods depending on your country. Monthly gifts can be stopped at any time by writing to hello@young-foundation.com.
01
Sport programmes
Fees, kit, facilities and travel for athletes who would otherwise stop. Plus the team sponsorships that carry the name.
02
Mentorship
Matching, running and following up the programme, so a young entrepreneur gets six months of real attention rather than one meeting.
03
Resources for young entrepreneurs
The first costs: registration, tools, a website, the equipment that turns an idea into something you can sell.
YOUNG Foundation is in the process of being formally incorporated as a stichting in the Netherlands. KvK number, tax number and ANBI status will be published here as soon as they are available.
News &inspiration
New partnerships, new athletes, milestones and the things we are learning as we go. Stay in the loop on how the Foundation grows.
YOUNG Foundation is a collective: founders, board members and advisors who believe that when young people get the right support, they move faster and further.
Managing Director
Judith Keizer
Years of building sponsorships, partnerships and connections between brands, organisations and people. Turns ideas into partnerships that help young entrepreneurs connect, learn and grow.
Board of Advisors
Nanne Veenstra
Real estate entrepreneur, with a background in banking and scale-ups. Curious by nature, and good at turning ideas into something practical.
Board of Advisors
Sara de Jong-Driessen
A gynaecologist who spends her days with people at their most transformative moments. Brings resilience, trust and a belief that entrepreneurship should be open to everyone.
Founder & Mentor
Wim de Jong
Founder and owner of YOUNG. A dealmaker and a challenger, here because progress rarely happens alone: it happens when someone chooses to open a door.
Four ways in: apply, mentor, donate or partner. Here is what each one involves.
Three ways in: apply, mentor or partner. Here is what each one involves.
Who can apply to YOUNG Foundation?
Young athletes and young entrepreneurs looking for support in their development, within the Foundation’s criteria. You do not need a finished plan or a sponsor already in place. You need the ambition and the willingness to work.
How does the mentor programme work?
You apply, we match you with a mentor from the YOUNG network who has already faced what you are facing, and you meet monthly for six months. Both sides agree on what they want out of it at the start, and we check in along the way.
Where does my donation go?
Into three things: sport programmes, running the mentorship programme, and resources for young entrepreneurs at the point where money is the difference between starting and not starting.
How do I become an ambassador or partner?
Talk to us. Ambassadors carry the name and open doors; partners back a team, a season or a programme. We will tell you exactly what your contribution pays for and report back on it.
Is YOUNG Foundation an ANBI charity?
The Foundation is in the process of being formally incorporated as a stichting in the Netherlands. The KvK number, tax number and ANBI status will be published here as soon as the registration is complete.
