To be eligible for the grant, a team must be:
- in its first or second season (or re-forming after a three-year hiatus), OR
- Playing in a developmental or challenge league while building towards a full 15s roster
In addition, the team must have:
- Had 14 or fewer registered players in the previous 23-24 season; and
- Been a team in good standing and met all registration requirements (or received a waiver).
Clubs in the Emerging Team Grant program are not eligible for NCR national playoffs or national rankings, and the players can not be selected as All Americans. The players are eligible for all other member programs including National All Stars, Scholastic All Americans and other NCR recognition programs.
If a grantee team is able to form a competitive team and wishes to be considered for National 15s or 7s playoffs, they must first pay the difference between the grant fee and full fee amount.
Teams must reapply annually and are only eligible to receive the Emerging Team Grant two years out of every five years.
The application process for the Emerging Grant program will begin when registration opens.