Youth sports are more accessible to privileged families

A comprehensive study examining U.S. youth sports participation over the past 60 years reveals a significant rise in the number of children engaging in organized sports, particularly among families with higher socioeconomic status and education levels. 

According to the experts, about 70% of Americans born in the 1990s and reaching age 18 by 2015-16 participated in organized sports through recreational, school, or club teams. This marks a steady increase in participation compared to earlier generations, with just over half of those born in the 1950s reporting similar involvement.

Class differences in youth sports participation 

However, the study also highlights notable generational disparities in who gets to participate in these activities. For children born in the 1950s, there were no significant class differences in sports participation. 

In contrast, by the 1990s, a pronounced gap had emerged, with children of college-educated parents being 24 percentage points more likely to play organized sports than those whose parents did not have a college education.

“Childhood social class matters when it comes to whether you have the opportunity to participate in organized sports, something which is a relatively recent development,” said Chris Knoester, lead author of the study and a professor of sociology at the Ohio State University. 

“We found that privileged families seem to be leveraging their advantages to strategically and intentionally invest in organized sports participation. That can give their children big benefits.”

Evolution of youth sports

One of the study’s key contributions is its detailed review of how youth sports participation patterns have evolved over six decades. 

The researchers utilized data from the National Sports and Society Survey, conducted in 2018 and 2019 by Ohio State, which included responses from 3,935 adults across the country about their childhood sports experiences.

The study showed that youth from privileged backgrounds increasingly dominate organized sports, reflecting the growing privatization of youth sports, the enhanced reliance on parental involvement, and the rapid expansion of club sports. 

“There has been a dramatic decrease in public support for extracurricular activities in schools that started in the ’80s, including sports,” said co-author Chris Bjork, an expert in education at Vassar College. 

“One result has been the growth of club sports, which can be very expensive, and not all parents are in the position to afford that for their kids.”

Concerns about equity and access

According to Project Play by the Aspen Institute, the average family spent $883 annually on one child’s primary sport in 2022. 

For many privileged families, investing in organized and private club sports is viewed as a way to help their children excel, potentially leading to college scholarships and other life opportunities. However, the expense of such opportunities raises concerns about equity and access.

Increasing participation of girls 

The study also documented a positive trend: the increasing participation of girls in youth sports. In the 1950s, only about 45% of girls participated in organized sports, lagging significantly behind boys. 

By the 1990s, that number had risen to about 70%, matching the participation rates of boys. This shift is largely attributed to Title IX, the 1972 federal law that prohibited sex-based discrimination in education, including sports.

“It resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of girls taking part in sports,” Knoester said. This increase in female participation was notably reflected in the recent Olympic Games in Paris, where U.S. women won 67 of the country’s 126 medals. 

“Title IX and the increase in girls playing sports really set the stage for what we saw in Paris this summer, with the domination of U.S. women,” Knoester added.

Dropout rate in youth sports

Another significant finding of the study is the rise in the proportion of children who start playing organized sports but then drop out. 

Among those born in the 1950s, just over 50% of those who began playing organized sports dropped out before turning 18. For those born in the 1990s, that dropout rate increased to over 70 percent.

Knoester and colleagues previously found that many children drop out of sports because they aren’t having fun or feel they aren’t good enough. The current study suggests that this issue has worsened for recent generations. 

The increase in dropouts may be linked to the pressures associated with club sports and the high expectations placed on young athletes.

Dramatic shift in youth sports

“Underlying all of this is the dramatic shift from sports being seen as a way to have fun and make friends and learn life lessons to sports being a way to get ahead in life,” Bjork said.

Knoester said that there is a pressing need to return to the original promise of youth sports as a positive and inclusive force in society, helping all children achieve health goals, make friends, and learn teamwork. 

“We need to find ways to keep kids involved and positive on the fields and courts, without the hyper-competitive, high-pressure, expensive culture that seems to predominate today,” he concluded.

The study is published in the journal Leisure/Loisir.

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