JAM’s Post

Stack Sports has joined nearly 20 partner organizations for The Aspen Institute’s new #63X30 Vision, aimed at getting 63% of youth playing sports by 2030. As of today it is estimated only 54% of children ages 6-17 in the U.S. played on a team or took lessons in 2022. As one of the partner organizations, Stack Sports joins the other partnering organizations in committing to taking actions that can get and keep more children playing sports, from creating affordable programs in underserved neighborhoods to promoting multi-sport sampling to developing more coaches to serve children’s needs. Read more about the new initiative→ https://lnkd.in/gbq5Wz4k

As a mom deeply engaged with minor sports associations, I’ve come to realize the incredible power of collaboration and community in shaping our children’s experiences and growth. Our journey through youth sports has not just been about wins or losses; it’s been a profound lesson in the strength of unity and the importance of support networks. Building More Than Athletes In the world of minor sports, the collaboration between parents, coaches, and organizations is fundamental. Together, we do more than just organize games; we build character, instill values, and encourage teamwork. This cooperative effort ensures that our children learn invaluable life skills such as leadership, perseverance, and sportsmanship, which are as crucial off the field as they are on it. The Role of Community Support The support of our community plays a pivotal role in the success of minor sports programs. From local businesses sponsoring teams to families hosting fundraising events, every contribution strengthens the fabric of our sports associations. This collective backing not only provides the necessary resources for our teams but also creates a nurturing environment where every child can thrive, regardless of their background or ability level. Success Through Unity The victories we celebrate are not just those scored on the field but also the personal achievements of our young athletes. Watching a shy child emerge as a confident team player or an inexperienced player develop into a skilled athlete underscores the impact of our collaborative efforts. These successes remind us that when we come together, we can overcome challenges and create opportunities for all our children to succeed. A Call to Join Forces I encourage all parents and community members to get involved with minor sports associations. Whether it’s volunteering your time, sharing your skills, or simply cheering from the sidelines, your participation makes a difference. By joining forces, we can ensure that our sports programs continue to be a powerful vehicle for positive development, community building, and lifelong memories. #minorsport #albertasport #communityengagement

🚀✨It’s time. 🚀✨ It’s time for us to really take a closer look at the impact that sports can have on the world. Front Office Sports shared that Super Bowl LVIII brought an audience of 123.4 million—it made HISTORY. + gofos.co/3SWo74n 123.4 million. • what are people watching? • who are they watching? • what are they hearing? My brother Timothy F. Bryson takes us around the world to think internalionnally about sports & student-athletes. My brother Amobi Okugo helps us think about finances and partnership in sports. Now is the time. Let’s go bigger. Let’s think community uplift, community development, K-12 improvement, the eradication of marginalization. If everyone gave 1 quarter… .25cents during the game. What could that do? Simple = yes. Achievable = yes. Barriers = none. If legal barriers= why? 🤔 Each one, reach one. It’s time to win championships for & with empowerment in mind, too 🚀 #BiggerThanSports | #NFL | #communitybuilding | #StudentSuccess | #sportsbiz

Youth sports is the classic "programs-rich, systems-poor" institution, a siloed space lacking any government-recognized structure for organizations to collaborate and speak to officials and policymakers about shared interests. It doesn't have to be this way. Today, we release a two-pager on five ways that cities and counties can better organize and support local sports, and a report by the author Linda Flanagan on promising models used in three jurisdictions. Essential resources!

Maheed, a 2015 born, 9 year old soccer player is by some distance the best player at the AYSES soccer club located in Fairview, Texas. The club currently has teams from 2018 born players to 2007 born players. But Maheed is one of quite a few players who possessed from the outset an amazing talent, understanding of the game, and high level ball skills before joining the club. And it appears to resemble a pattern of players who joined the American youth soccer program late. It is not uncommon to find that many of the best players do not join organized clubs until later than usual and so was the case with Clint Dempsey, who spent much of his time as a young kid playing for fun among many Mexican immigrant kids in Nacogdoches, Texas. And growing up he spent many years playing alongside much older players. Maheed like Dempsey learned soccer from someone much older, his brother in particular, who is 5-6 years older. And played with him consistently. He did not spend 30 minutes of a 1.5 hour practice session at 6 years old learning passing technique followed by another 30 minutes of how to stand and place in formation during a game. Followed by a conclusion of a 30 minute scrimmage resulting in a total of 2-4 minutes of ball touches among a game of 4 versus 4. It would not be crazy to believe that coaches, including myself, are the ones that mess up kids in the early stages wasting time teaching formations, passing, and tactics in the early ages at the expense of exploration, creativity, and ball touches therefore ruining our players. And yet Maheed still passes better than his peers. Instead, perhaps we need to be less invasive in our approach particularly in the younger ages. It is a pleasure to watch Maheed play. It is important that if we are going to consistently find players like Maheed and develop the most elite players in the world here in the USA, that we share practices and methods because not one coach or club has all the answers and it would be absurd to think so. Because no one coach or club has ever produced that result in the USA. At EvoToca, we aim to be a community in search of coaches truly motivated to improve the level of its youth players without being conflicted by the business side of youth soccer interested in their Profit and Loss statements more interested in growth then in quality. #soccercoach #soccertraining #youthsoccer #soccerislife #ussoccer #footballcoaching #footballcoach

“Parents are all just working with a system that is dysfunctional at best and broken at worst” - Tom Farrey, The Aspen Institute Youth sports industry...we need to do better. Aside from the discussion of private equity's influence, the current state of the youth sports industry as shared by Bloomberg is grim. 💸 Sports are too expensive for families, with parents spending approximately $900 per child per season. ⚽ Kids specializing in a single sport is occurring at younger ages, despite research showing that playing multiple sports is better for athletic success and mental health ❌ Children from low-income and single-parent homes are being excluded. ⏰ The time commitment for kids and families on nights and weekends for practices and tournaments is unmanageable. Inclyousion Sports is a sports business built by parents, for parents. Everything we do, we consider the impact on families, because we have three kids of our own. We are you. At Inclyousion Sports... ✅ Our programs are significantly cheaper than many competitive programs, and we offer scholarships for families who are experiencing financial hardship. ✅ We provide multi-sport programming so children learn a variety of skills and can explore their interests across multiple sports. ✅ We intentionally remove barriers so that children of all abilities, backgrounds, and financial situations can participate equitably. We don't just say "all are welcome", we walk the walk. ✅ Our programs are typically one sports class per week so that families can enjoy full lives outside of sports. Learn more about Inclyousion Sports as we change the game so that all kids have access to high quality sports. https://lnkd.in/egaPAV9z

Maheed, a 2015 born, 9 year old soccer player is by some distance the best player at the AYSES soccer club located in Fairview, Texas. The club currently has teams from 2018 born players to 2007 born players. But Maheed is one of quite a few players who possessed from the outset an amazing talent, understanding of the game, and high level ball skills before joining the club. And it appears to resemble a pattern of players who joined the American youth soccer program late. It is not uncommon to find that many of the best players do not join organized clubs until later than usual and so was the case with Clint Dempsey, who spent much of his time as a young kid playing for fun among many Mexican immigrant kids in Nacogdoches, Texas. And growing up he spent many years playing alongside much older players. Maheed like Dempsey learned soccer from someone much older, his brother in particular, who is 5-6 years older. And played with him consistently. He did not spend 30 minutes of a 1.5 hour practice session at 6 years old learning passing technique followed by another 30 minutes of how to stand and place in formation during a game. Followed by a conclusion of a 30 minute scrimmage resulting in a total of 2-4 minutes of ball touches among a game of 4 versus 4. It would not be crazy to believe that coaches, including myself, are the ones that mess up kids in the early stages wasting time teaching formations, passing, and tactics in the early ages at the expense of exploration, creativity, and ball touches therefore ruining our players. And yet he still passes better than his peers. Instead, perhaps we need to be less invasive in our approach particularly in the younger ages. It is a pleasure to watch Maheed play. It is important that if we are going to consistently find players like Maheed and develop the most elite players in the world here in the USA, that we share practices and methods because not one coach or club has all the answers and it would be absurd to think so. Because no one coach or club has ever produced that result in the USA. At EvoToca, we aim to be a community in search of coaches truly motivated to improve the level of its youth players without being conflicted by the business side of youth soccer interested in their Profit and Loss statements more interested in growth then in quality. #soccercoach #soccertraining #youthsoccer #soccerislife #ussoccer #footballcoaching #footballcoach

Neighborhood Sports Play is the Last Affordable Youth Sports Option The belief that youth recreational sports is the last affordable sport option is an urban myth since the average cost for 3 months of youth recreational sports costs $300-$400 per player for 3 months of play (compare that cost to the average monthly food budget for a family of 4 in California is just under $300) As parents we need to ask ourselves, why do we need coaches, uniforms, referees or umpires, parents and sport field rentals for our kids to play a sport that most of us played in our neighborhoods with our friends until about 2 decades ago --and while most of us believe that neighborhood play option is gone-how can we reintroduce that play culture back into our neighborhoods.

In a guest article for #ProjectPlay, Linda Flanagan explores governments in three communities that are making sports more accessible. Plus, download a new resource with five ways cities and counties can better organize and support youth sports.

Neighborhood Sports Play is the Last Affordable Youth Sports Option The belief that youth recreational sports is the last affordable sport option is an urban myth since the average cost for 3 months of youth recreational sports costs $300-$400 per player for 3 months of play (compare that cost to the average monthly food budget for a family of 4 in California is just under $300) As parents we need to ask ourselves, why do we need coaches, uniforms, referees or umpires, parents and sport field rentals for our kids to play a sport that most of us played in our neighborhoods with our friends until about 2 decades ago --and while most of us believe that neighborhood play option is gone-how can we reintroduce that play culture back into our neighborhoods.