Club Sports: Recreation or Racket?

“So, what sports do you play?” Can you count the number of times someone has asked your child that question? Sure, it’s well-intentioned, but our culture does pressure parents and kids to be busy and preferably competitive.

Most parents probably begin sports teams for many of the same reasons that Mary Lu Day, Parkville, Mo., shared: social interaction, physical fitness and the lessons learned from team play and healthy competition. But whether you are entrenched in competitive sports or just starting to consider it, experienced parents and coaches warn: Buyer beware. 

How’d We Get Here?

The sport club movement grew during the 1970s, when the number of working mothers escalated and unstructured, outdoor play declined.  Recreational leagues replaced informal neighborhood games, providing venues for physical fitness and healthy competition.  This sufficed until kids reached middle and high school, when school-supported teams provided the coaching necessary to play at a more competitive level.

Gradually however, parents desired something else for the more skilled athletes, and began forming elite club teams led by paid professional coaches. Soccer led the way, but by the 1990s, the club movement pervaded nearly every sport. Now, instead of preparing kids to play for their high school teams, some clubs have become so elite that many athletes forego the high school team experience in order to continue playing for their club team. What began as a way for kids to enhance their athletic ability has become a professionalized racket.

Weigh Both Sides

Although most parents’ intentions in joining a club team are probably good, it’s worth examining yours before you get on board--and start writing checks. First, honestly try to discern your motivation—and your child’s and potential coach’s. Many coaches view club sports as a way to “keep up with the Joneses” or relive their childhood dreams.

Perhaps surprising are the top reasons kids want to play sports. The University of Notre Dame’s Parent Like A Champion Today series lists them: to have fun, improve skills, enjoy competition and get exercise. Maybe even more surprising, the study found winning, or being on a winning team, mattered less to kids than simply being able to play the sport(s) they enjoy.

Make sure your child really wants to play on a competitive team, perhaps limiting himself to a single sport.  Cam Jury, a former Oak Park High School coach, recommends asking yourself, “Is my child really the exception [who needs specialized coaching or more competitive play]?”  If you can make your decision on the basis of these questions and your financial status, your child will probably excel. 

Mary Lu Day and her three children have experienced the dual nature of club sports.  Her younger son has thrived in soccer, but her daughter lost all interest after a season with a too-aggressive coach. Her older son has become a record-setting competitive swimmer, and it’s in club swimming that all three have blossomed. In the pool, Day’s children have learned how to gracefully win and lose and to strive for their personal best, all while staying physically fit and socially engaged.

“It’s All About the Coach”

Aggressive coaches are not unique to club teams, but they are more prevalent when teams begin keeping score and paying the coaches.  Inherent in the club environment is an expectation to perform. Paying parents want to attend (and win) prestigious tournaments, and increasingly, have their children play in front of scholarship-wielding college recruiters. 

This is where it becomes crucial to examine everyone’s goals.  Most coaches discourage parents and athletes from relying solely on sports to finance their college education. Jury did this throughout his tenure at Oak Park High School and emphasizes that there is, and always has been, more scholarship money available for academics than for sports. 

Networking with experienced parents and athletes yields valuable information about a club and its coaches.  Ask club team contacts about practice frequency, attendance requirements, equitable playing time, travel, etc.  If possible, attend some practices to see if they are fun and stimulating.

Physical Costs

Besides money and time commitments, consider the physical costs. Overuse injuries have escalated greatly since athletes began specializing at younger ages.  For example, playing year-round baseball has 10-year-old pitchers undergoing reconstructive surgery.  Knee injuries are becoming widespread among girls playing year-round basketball.

Jury states he had better teams when his athletes played more than one sport and still contends that playing multiple sports makes one a better athlete.  He, along with a growing number of athletic trainers and physical therapists, encourages athletes to play multiple sports through high school and specialize in college.  Reducing stress on developing muscles lowers the risk of surgery that may have lifelong impacts. 

Joyce Bassett, a hockey/soccer mom from Albany, N.Y., is vocal on this subject: “Look for ways to keep your young athlete in shape that don’t involve playing the same sport year-round.” An overuse injury forced her daughter to miss her high school team tryout.

Is It Worth It?

Despite the occasional poor coach or disorganized club, most parents agree that if the athlete is motivated, the club experience will help them learn and progress. 

Priscilla Kelly got her daughters involved in club volleyball after playing in Gladstone’s recreational leagues. With sharpened skills, her daughter, Casey, later won a spot on the Winnetonka High School team. “The club experience was expensive, but we felt it was worth it,” Kelly said. “Not only was it the competition, but learning all aspects of the sport.” 

On the other hand, Carolyn Ross of Kansas City North, despises club sports.  “It’s a racket …. [that] bleeds parents of their time and money.” The mother of four daughters who play club sports, she cautions parents about the time commitment--12-hour tournament days--and to be wary of viewing this as a source for college money.  Yet, as a volleyball coach for nine years, she finds that those who play club are easier to coach, and bring a better understanding of the game.  And, she concedes, club play did give her daughters an edge at the more competitive high school level.

About 70 percent of athletes stop competing around the eighth grade and less than 5% receive college scholarships, but some do.  Lauren Starks played club volleyball throughout middle and high school.  At 18, she joined Team KC to play for a coach from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where she wanted to play during college.  She received a full volleyball scholarship to UMKC; most of her teammates also received scholarships. “I was recruited by five other schools and much of that exposure came from them seeing me play in club tournaments,” Starks said.

Raising Champions

How to sort all this out?  Remember, as parents, our job is to encourage our children to achieve their best--their champion level--on whatever field of play that may be.  Those who listen, observe and encourage their children will not only raise champions, but will become champion parents themselves.

-Kathy Stump lives in Parkville with her family and enjoys cheering her kids on at local games!