President Obama Can’t Save Youth Soccer

Economy Takes Toll on All Youth Sports
Mike Whitmore
Youth Soccer News

If you’re the new President of the United States, you might be just “tad” busy right now. Hundreds, if not thousands, of issues on your plate and trust me, saving youth soccer is not one of them. Youth soccer clubs from all around the world will soon start to feel the pinch of an ever tightening economy.

For the first time in many years some youth soccer clubs are predicting, if not already seeing, a drop in numbers rather than the steady incline they have seen for many years. Everyone from recreational leagues to advanced academy programs everywhere are starting to see a “bump in the road” and it is affecting the numbers.

A family with two children can easily spend in excess of $2000 a season by the time you add up club fees, equipment and travel costs. The only bright side of the picture right now is that fuel costs are nearly half of what they a short time ago. In times where everything seems to be having budget cuts, the family’s dollars for “sports activities” is dwindling as well.

Dave Meyers, a club manager in Texas said, “We always operate on a tight budget, but if numbers start to decline, we are facing some tough decisions. We are an academy program that pays our coaches but we may have to ask them to reduce their income. We are also looking at other sources of revenue.” This trend seems to be spreading throughout the US, and not just in certain regions. The CT, Watertown Youth Soccer Association registration peaked at nearly 700 youngsters in the fall of 2006 and has since dropped to around 520 this fall. While they are not positive the economy is main factor, it certainly contributes to the decline.

Many clubs have tried approaching local businesses but that door seems to shutting quickly as well. Just trying to meet the payroll is tough enough, charity to local clubs will have to wait it seems. Steve Whitmore, who helps run a local academy soccer club, said “We stopped knocking on local business doors last year because it just wasn’t effective. We now use our website to help. We started using fund raising programs like SoccerU last year. They helped us generate very good money for our club and the parents and kids received quality training.”
We don’t see youth soccer getting in line for the government bailouts just yet, but who knows. With tax payers shelling out millions to companies that support professional teams and athletes it might just make sense.