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Monday, August 05, 2019

Sports participation among American youth falls to just 38 percent

A remarkable 62 percent of American children have quit playing sports, and now famous athletes such as Kobe Bryant, Wayne Gretzky, and Sloane Stephens are a part of a nationwide effort to identify the problems and increase athletic participation.

As recently as 2008, 45 percent of kids between 6 and 12 were playing team sports on a regular basis, according to research from the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA). However, that number fell to just 38 percent by 2018.

In response, the Aspen Institute's Project Play 2020 initiative has started a new awareness campaign titled 'Don't Retire, Kid,' which launched on Sunday and aims to reverse the trend in hopes of promoting physical and emotional health among American children.

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13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Short of attending church weekly, sports teach moral.

Anonymous said...

Kids sports have become ridiculous mostly because of their parents. There is too much pressure and not enough fun. The odds of your. Kid being the next Kobe Bryant or God forbid, Megan Rapinoe are about the same as hitting the lottery. Lighten up!

Anonymous said...

Phones, video games etc.

Anonymous said...

I think "the kneelers" and disrespect for our flag and National Anthem put a damper on sports. Look at latest attendance records.

Anonymous said...

103, they do? Is that why so many professional athletes kneel for the National Anthem?

Anonymous said...

Hopefully they are spending more time reading and studying.

Anonymous said...

Sports are too hard.

Anonymous said...

No that's not why 1:03
They kneel because they don't know any better, looking at the wrong news and listening to the wrong people.

Anonymous said...

3:09 too hard?? builds teamwork, stops obesity, builds character, gets them off their butts. people that say that sports are too hard are the problem

Anonymous said...

They are too lazy, kids can't do anything more strenuous than moving their thumbs to play with their phones now.

Anonymous said...

Most educated Parents don't want their boys playing Football anymore. It causes way too many problems later in their life.

Anonymous said...

It's too expensive to be on these travel teams. High fees to get in a tournament, travel expense, plus all the uniform and equipment prices. Kids need to find something cheaper to be involved in.

Anonymous said...

Obviously the study considers video games to be a sport otherwise the percentage would be much lower.