In The News

The Quality Parenting Framework was published last week by the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee in a genuine effort to promote and encourage the appropriate quality of parent involvement in youth sport. The Framework, authored by leading researchers f...

Playing sports comes at a steep price. From new gear to drive times, the cost of your kids’ sports could take a toll this spring.

Today we'll hear from Travis Dorsch, a former football and baseball player at Purdue University who made it to the NFL. He is now a renowned sports psychologist whose academic research centers around the relationship between parents and kids in sports

Philadelphia is just one city trying to create rules around NIL for the community's youngest athletes, using these financial opportunities as a chance to rethink youth sports overall.

Rising costs leave some families at risk of being left behind in youth sports.

Chicago-based tech startup has fully launched the industry’s first research-informed decision engine to help teens find meaningful afterschool engagement while also supporting program providers to lower liability, improve participant engagement, and drive...

Families are spending more on their kids' sports: 59% of parents say the cost is a financial strain, and about 20% say they are spending more than $1,000 on youth sports. Researchers offer tips for saving money, and for approaching the topic with your own...

An interview with Linda Flanagan, the author of “Take Back the Game".

Parents behaving badly at youth sporting events is growing more common across the nation and something we’ve seen play out here in Utah in recent weeks.

Sponsorship opportunities have already changed college athletics. Is youth sports next?

Everyone knows raising kids is expensive. But raising athletic kids? That can be downright exorbitant. From cleats to skates, sign-up fees to game-day uniforms, the costs of participating in sports for the nation’s roughly 19 million kid athletes can e

On a recent Friday evening, Preston Azzara, a 17-year-old power hitter, sends the first pitch over the left-field fence and rounds the bases slowly, his arms raised and whooping as he reaches home plate.

Travis Dorsch is an associate professor at Utah State University, where he studies and teaches about youth sports. Professor Dorsch’s work influences the broader field in multiple ways – especially in our move toward adopting more holistic understandings ...

While participation in organized youth sports was declining before the start of the coronavirus pandemic, there’s no denying that COVID-19 has had a profound effect. In addition to the usual challenges of cost, access, competitiveness and time-commitments...

Travis Dorsch, Utah State University Families in Sport Lab, joins The News with Shepard Smith to discuss why young people are less interested in playing team sports.

“There is a lot more stuff competing for the attention of young people — e-sports is a big one,” said Dr. Travis E. Dorsch, associate professor and founding director of the Families in Sport Lab at Utah State University. “As kids get older, there is more ...

As the 20th anniversary of the Salt Lake Olympics approaches, a new scientific study revealed the real impact of the Games on the Beehive State.

For more than a century, team sports have been a mainstay of American childhood. What began as a way to keep boys in cities occupied and out of trouble has evolved into a $19-billion industry, with much of that revenue being generated by elite travel team...

But the world of youth sports has become a pressure cooker – one that, for now, the Redds have managed to resist.

The study demonstrated significant findings of the connection between youth sports and mental health, with 9 in 10 parents (89%) citing mental health as a top reason their children participate in youth sports.

Over the years, the three Walker boys gathered a trove of medals and trophies in football, basketball, track and swimming. Their father, Phil Walker, poured his heart into their pursuits and thousands of dollars into equipment, private leagues and trainin...

Travis has been the top of the sports world - playing at the professional level. Now he gives back by educating parents on building better relationships and creating the right motivation for youth to excel in sports.

According to research from the Aspen Institute and Utah State University, youth from low-income homes quit sports because of the financial costs at six times the rate of those from high-income homes.

July 31, opening night at Coors Field. No fans in the stands, piped-in crowd noise blaring from speakers, and a lonely Dinger the dinosaur, the Rockies’ mascot, sits alone in a section of outfield seats. Reading.

It's no secret that sales of kids' bikes have boomed this year. But the even better news for the industry is new research that suggests youth cycling will continue to be a bright spot post-pandemic.

Professional and college sports are playing through the pandemic, although it's taken a toll. Many athletes and prominent coaches have contracted the virus; games have been postponed.

According to the Times-Tribune Staff, the COVID virus has been taking a large toll on youth sports. In order to read the entire article you must be a premium subscriber.

Riley is the coach of the boys’ varsity team at Jordan High School in Watts, one of the hardest parts of South Los Angeles. He graduated from Jordan, grew up in one of the housing projects nearby, and went on to succeed in college basketball and then in E...

Over the past two decades, there have been only two seasons in which USA Hockey reported dips in participation: 2004-05 and 2012-13. Both seasons corresponded with the NHL season being disrupted by a lockout.

As if there wasn’t enough to worry about, out comes a survey that says 50% of parents overall fear they or their child will get sick from participating in organized sports once government restrictions imposed during the coronavirus pandemic are lifted.

These podcasts are from a monthly series of talks for coach educators/developers at national governing bodies and large sports organizations.

On average, families spend nearly $700 a year on each child's athletic participation, according to a new survey of over a thousand parents, conducted by The Aspen Institute and Utah State University.

The Little League World Series is well under way, and the scene looks so exciting—talented ballplayers; big crowds; a warm hug of attention from Major Leaguers and national TV.

Only 38 percent of young kids played team sports regularly in 2018 compared to 45 percent about a decade ago, according to research from the Sports & Fitness Industry Association.

The problem is, she can't put him in just any program she finds and is interested in. Because of her financial situation, she picks only those that are free or subsidized or through the military, as Malachi's father is in the armed forces.

The reason is not that he has already won enough championships or decided to pursue an acting career to be the next Rock, aka the Pebble. It's because playing sports just hasn't been fun for him.

The campaign Don’t Retire, Kid is aiming to reduce the number of kids dropping out of organized sports. The ESPN initiative is part of the Aspen Institute’s Project Play 2020.

Kobe Bryant spent most of his youth playing basketball and then had a 20-year career in the NBA. The kids watching him? They have a whole different set of pressures on them, he says.

Here is a trickle-down professionalization in youth sports. Parents feel a pressure to spend more money to get their kids on the best teams in order to achieve in sport.

This rendition of the Brian Kilmeade Show, from Fox News Radio tackles the concept: The booming business of youth sports leaves some opportunities out of reach for kids of working families. The rising cost of youth sports in America.

For much of the past decade, Richard Ness traveled with his son Chip, a youth wrestler, to events around the country. He estimated he spent “likely close to six figures” on his son’s wrestling career.

No team sport projects white machismo as aggressively as ice hockey. Fans witness violence that, were the majority of players black or brown, would prompt pearl-clutching about “incivility” or “disrespect.”

Angriffe auf Schiedsrichter, Eingriffe in das Spiel: In den USA nimmt das unsportliche Verhalten ehrgeiziger Mütter und Väter immer krassere Formen an. Die Erwartungshaltung an die Kinder ist enorm, in den Sport wird viel investiert.

Based on dozens of interviews with psychologists, athletic directors and coaches, here are key tips for parents to make their children's athletic experience enjoyable and develop lifelong skills.

Youth sports organizations are increasingly reporting scenarios in which parents yell, threaten or physically assault coaches, referees, players or other parents.

The best moments of high school for 18-year-old senior Will Huggins haven’t been typical rites of passage like the prom or getting a driver’s license. Instead, he recites his time in the 40-yard dash, down four-tenths of a second in two years, and the 40 ...

The USCCE recognizes that not all coaching education and coach development professionals are affiliated with an organization, yet they have a lot to contribute to the movement to enrich coaching through coaching education and coach development.

The Youth Sports Megacomplex Comes to Town, Hoping Teams Will Follow an article from, The New York Times.

Participation in youth sports is declining, particularly among low-income children, who are about half as likely to play organized sports as higher income kids.

To get to this level isn’t cheap: families pay league fees, coaching fees, team fees, tournament fees, private conditioning fees, the list goes on.

Find guidance in your life from the Sport Psychology Podcast, help ranging from online therapy, to guidance counselors.

Since Ian played his first golf tournament at age 7, the couple’s financial commitment to his athletic development has been sizable.

I learned that parents use social media to post highlights of their budding Michael Jordan, and that some youngsters are becoming nationally known for spending hours in the batting cage when they should be climbing trees and having lightsaber battles.

In TIME’s cover story this week, senior writer Sean Gregory explores the growing business of kids’ sports — a $15.3 billion industry that has nearly doubled in the last 10 years.

His private hitting coach, who’s charging $100 for this hour-long session, tells Joey to shorten his stride. He’s accustomed to such focused instruction: the evening batting practice followed a one-on-one fielding lesson in Philadelphia earlier in the day...

When it comes to building a niche customer base, there may be none more loyal than athletes. They thrive in the thrill of competition and the good ones excel in an atmosphere of teamwork.

Explore hundreds of podcasts from The Pete The Planner Show, to learn how to manage your money and effectively.

Investicija, koja je u Srbiji gde je prosečna plata oko 400 evra za veliku većinu nešto o čemu čak ne može ni da se mašta, retko se vraća a pritisak koji toliki novac stvara i na roditelje i na decu beli sport pretvara u igru sa malo uživanja.

The Olympics spark hope in many a child of going for the gold. But in financially supporting those dreams, some parents are going for broke.

John Amaechi first picked up a basketball when he was 17, after suffering through years of playing rugby in England. He soon left for Ohio to finish high school. Six years later, he started at center for the Cleveland Cavaliers and went on to have a solid...

10% of children have been given a diagnosis for ADHD, and we are all wondering if there is something else we can do besides medication.

A youth sports platform for developing athlete strength, soccer skills, and team spirit. Maximize performance and fun, while minimizing injuries.

At the end of a long haul, Brad Livingstone and his wife, Jennifer, took its measure. Their schedule had been a “constant grind” for months, ferrying three sons.

We all want our kids to excel, but the cost of youth athletics can really do some damage to a family budget. Gym fees, private lessons, uniforms, and travel to far-away tournaments can easily run into the thousands of dollars a year.

A recent Journal article got me thinking about sports parenting, my own childhood, and the remarkable amount some mothers and fathers are spending to develop child athletes.

When sports psychologist Travis Dorsch set about studying the effect of parental spending on young athletes, he expected to find a positive correlation. After all, recent research suggests that young athletes benefit from parental support.

As a parent, you might think that spending big bucks on travel teams and private coaches is helping your child reach his or her athletic potential. However, a study is positing that this strategy is the opposite of helping.

Tune in to KNRS on I Heart Radio, to hear a podcast on parents in organized youth sport.

Softball coach Dan Higgs didn't know what to say to a player who repeatedly confided something to him: "I don't even want to play anymore, but my family says this is my only ticket to college. I don't know how to tell my dad I don't want to play."