GameChanger Goes Mainstream With National Campaign

🥎 The business of youth sports

Author

Kyle Scott
April 28, 2025

This is Buying Sandlot — the only newsletter that focuses solely on the business of youth sports.

Let’s get right to it.

In the email today:

📺 GameChanger Launched Its First National Brand Campaign Today

GameChanger (owned by Dick’s) launched its first national brand campaign this morning.

For The Love of Sport “shines a spotlight on the unsung heroes of youth sports – the coaches, parents, and families who show up every day, driven not by fame or fortune, but by love.”

The ad will run across digital and social platforms, including Meta, YouTube, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, ESPN, Conde Nast, and Hearst.

My take:

Not sure I’ve seen many examples of this sort of consumer-level brand campaign from a youth and amateur sports focused company. Maybe SportsEngine - owned by NBC - comes to mind?

I suspect we'll see much more of this as consolidation puts more IP in the hands of larger, bigger-budgeted companies.

Not surprisingly, GameChanger is owned by Dick's-- weaved seamlessly into the spot!

One more thing: The “with 5% battery for the trip home” line hits hard. Is anyone building the company to provide USB-C power outlets at fields across the country to solve this exact problem? Because I’ll invest in that.

Live Event: Abuse Prevention in Youth Sports*

After chatting with youth sports groups lately, one thing kept coming up again and again—kids' safety needs way more attention. With April being Childhood Abuse Prevention Month— it’s perhaps time to refocus on the safety and well-being of young athletes.

Ankored, which as we told you about recently partnered with Positive Coaching Alliance, is hosting a webinar with a panel of experts to share practical insights on how to build a safer, more supportive environment for kids in sports.

The speakers come from leading organizations:

  • Kyle Lubrano: Chief Customer Officer at Players Health

  • Meredith Thompson: Sr. Director of Health and Safety Protocols at Unrivaled Sports

  • Irene van der Zande: Executive Director and Founder at Kidpower International

The no-cost event will offer direct, actionable advice on abuse prevention protocols, educating and managing coaches, parents, and players, and immediate steps you can take to improve your organization’s safety program.

Webinar Details: April 30th at 1 PM EST (10 AM PST), 60 minutes

*Sponsor

Want to reach more than 2,000 investors, owners, and operators in the business of youth sports? Buy an ad in Buying Sandlot right here. Our rates will go up once we hit 2,500 subscribers, which should be sometime today. So limited-time offer, as they say.

📊 More Eye-Opening Stats On Youth Sports Costs

It is apparently Youth Sports Survey Season.

Good Sports dropped one last week focusing on the cost to families— similar to the New York Life report we led a send with last week.

But this one was a bit more pessimistic about the financial impact of participation.

  • 75% of parents have strongly considered pulling their children out of sports due to costs

  • 56% are worried they will not be able to afford continued participation in the next year

  • 58% said buying equipment has become a financial strain

  • 18% have gone into debt to pay for youth sports

  • 14% have not signed a child up for sports due to costs

My take:

It is interesting that this survey group — conducted by The Harris Poll — appears to be feeling much more of a financial squeeze than the New York Life one. Harris didn’t ask the parents if they have the delusional professional aspirations as the NYL parents, so perhaps that explains the chasm?

Another interesting thing from the survey: 67% of youth sports parents in the Western part of the country are more likely to say participation is a financial stress compared to 53% in the South and 50% in the Northeast. You would anecdotally think the West is more affluent than the South and the costs would be higher in the Northeast … but maybe the lack of facilities in flyover country (and the need for excessive travel) throws bricks onto the load?

To wit…

🏢 Youth Sports Facilities News

Nebraska is experiencing a youth sports complex boom.

The Sandhills Global Youth Complex in Lincoln had its grand opening last weekend. The $32 million baseball and softball facility serves kids ages 8-18 and has already hosted about 250 games.

It will also be the home field for D3 Nebraska Wesleyan University baseball and softball.

The facility is expected to deliver $15 million in economic impact in Year 1 and $20 million overall by Year 5.

(We touched on another Cornhusker State project in a previous send.)

Elsewhere …

In Colorado Springs: The Kent Olin Field Plaza opened last weekend at the El Pomar Youth Sports Park. It has a new 10,000-square-foot practice field in addition to concession stands, pavilions, a playground and improved bathrooms. The overall complex now boasts nine baseball/softball fields, up to 15 multipurpose fields and an inline rink.

👨‍🦰 Parents Behaving Badly

A man threatened to shoot an umpire last week at a youth sports complex in Florida.

The individual allegedly implied he had a gun in his truck during the confrontation at Pace Athletic Recreation Association, suggesting he would fire on the umpire if followed.

The man left the complex without any shots being fired, but the confusion caused a panic with the facility being evacuated.

The Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Office said it is investigating the incident, but no arrests had been made as of last week.

🗽 NY’s Child Labor Laws + Youth Sports

Clifton Park Town Supervisor Phil Barrett is calling for the change after a local youth sports league was audited in the Saratoga Springs area.

From a press release:

We understand rules are in place and must be followed by all organizations. However, many leagues and organizations related to sports utilize youth under 14 to oversee competitive games. This has been true for decades. For many organizations, most of their referees are under the age of 14. The referees are trained, learn responsibility, gain experience and are able to make a few bucks. If sports organizations can no longer have referees under the age of 14, it will severely limit their ability to offer competitive opportunities for our children. We often hear there is generally a severe shortage of referees for all levels of youth sports. The inability to utilize referees under the age of 14, will further minimize the pool of referees and place youth sports in a very compromised position.

Barrett said the audit led to fines and back pay to dozens of past youth referees. He argues there should be child labor carve-outs similar to the ones granted for farm work, newspaper delivery and child models and performers.

📋 Job Alert: Center Director, Police Athletic League of New York City

The PAL has served as a bridge between cops and the community in New York’s five boroughs for over a century through its sponsorship of youth sports. It is hiring a Center Director on-site in Staten Island for $64,350 annually.

We are looking for a Center Director who will be responsible for the overall planning and operation of the Center in accordance with the Police Athletic League's (the Agency) mission, goals, and policies. Provide leadership, direction, training, and support to on-site staff and volunteers in the safe and structured operation of the center. We are looking for a Center Director who will be responsible for the overall planning and operation of the Center in accordance with the Police Athletic League's (the Agency) mission, goals, and policies. Provide leadership, direction, training, and support to on-site staff and volunteers in the safe and structured operation of the center.

The full job listing can be found here on LinkedIn.

Would you like to put your open position in front of thousands of youth sports professionals? Pick an available date here.

👥 Welcome To New Members

Welcome to new members joining since the last send from organizations like USA Field Hockey, Trident Strategic Partners, Main Line Athletes, Team Snap, LeagueApps, National Junior Pickleball, and City Football, among many others.

You can view the full list of members who wanted an introduction to the Buying Sandlot community right here.

Let me know how I can help you make a connection!

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Good game.