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IMG Academy Is Quickly Becoming The Disney of Sports Training

🥎 The business of youth sports

Author

Kyle Scott
May 27, 2025

IMG is getting LARGE, like the tall guy in the back row

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

Back from the weekend and ready to rock.

In the email today:

đź“‹ IMG Academy Acquires SportsRecruits

IMG Academy has expanded its own college sports recruiting network and bought SportsRecruits.

The youth sports education behemoth already owned NCSA College Recruiting.

SportsRecruits says it “unifies the college recruiting process to generate exposure, create connection, uncover opportunities, and help student-athletes play the sport they love at their best-fit college.”

In effect, it’s a social network for recruiting.

Athletes create their profiles, upload video, and even contact coaches.

Meanwhile, coaches and programs use it to identify talent in an interface akin to what you would see in NCAA Football franchise mode.

But SportsRecruits is far from alone in this space. And as with any network, scale matters.

IMG is building scale. It said that NCSA was used to fill 25% of freshman college roster spots in 2024. Layering on the smaller, but perhaps more user-friendly SportsRecruits tech makes for a natural fit.

This is just the latest example of recent expansion by IMG:

  • The Bradenton, Florida, school announced it will begin offering on-campus teams in softball, and boys and girls volleyball

  • IMG Academy+ Essentials, a personal development digital platform, launched

  • IMG said will begin providing elements of its curriculum to school partners globally through IMG Academy Elevate

My take:

We wrote a few weeks ago about how we would begin to see the “IMG Academy everywhere” trend as sports-focused academies pop up.

But maybe it will just be IMG, everywhere. They are verticalizing and becoming the Disney of sports training.

They have:

  • premier brand name— “IMG” means something

  • physical location— “IMG Academy” is the gold standard

  • products and services— IMG Essentials+ (subscription-based education) and NCSA + SportsRecruits recruiting platforms create lock-in

  • syndicated content— IMG Academy Elevate providing curriculum for other institutions

It’s been compared to Hogwarts, but that doesn’t do it justice.

Just for fun, take a look at this screenshot— NCSA, announcing the SportsRecruits acquisition, with a photo that has IMG in the background:

I guess it’s only a matter of time until Under Armour buys them… or they buy Under Armour

We’re gonna need to do a deep dive on their expanding model soon.

🏀 The European Hoops Model May Have An NIL Problem

One of Europe’s top professional hoops teams may shut down its youth teams because it cannot compete with the NIL compensation top talent receive at NCAA schools.

Real Madrid — there is a basketball division and a soccer one — could soon pull the plug, according to Marca, a national sports-focused newspaper in Spain.

The same story said fellow Euroleague power Barcelona was considering a similar move, but the club has denied the claim.

The news comes as FIBA calls for more strenuous regulation on international players heading to the NCAA.

FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis has even called on schools to begin paying transfer fees when players leave FIBA teams, arguing the NCAA has de-emphasized academics and is now a de facto pro league.

My take:

It IS a pro league. The sooner everyone realizes this, the better.

That said, it would be a little ironic if Europe’s basketball development culture begins to erode due to stressors created by developments in the US right as the NBA (and others) plot to emulate Europe.

But the NCAA is the best existing system in the US to replicate the Euro academy model— you have structure, housing, academic education, elite coaches, large-scale events, and now even compensation. The problem is consistency has been removed from the NCAA system. Players can transfer at-will, often to a program or coach with a very different philosophy.

It feels like we are a long way from significant upheaval to the youth hoops pipeline overseas. One team reportedly doing away with its program is far from a trend.

But, a bit of a sign of the times here. Watch this space.

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🤝 Ankored, Yardstik Launch Strategic Partnership

Ankored — a youth sports automation compliance network (and Buying Sandlot sponsor) — has enhanced its safety offerings by integrating Yardstik’s background screening capabilities directly into its platform.

Youth sports organizations can now assign and track background checks based on an individual’s role alongside Ankored’s other compliance offerings, reducing administrative work by 95% through intelligent automation.

This is the second strategic partnership Ankored, which has emerged as a leader in the space, has struck in recent weeks. It also teamed up with Positive Coaching Alliance to streamline compliance, education and training tools into its platform.

🏢 Youth Sports Facilities News

Henderson, Nevada: Ground has broken on the $70M West Henderson Fieldhouse, which will house youth sports events and family entertainment space. The city said it expects the complex will support 250 new full-time jobs and generate $40M in annual economic impact along with $1.5M in tax revenue each year. The 180K-square-foot facility should open next year.

Denver: Wellington Webb, the city’s former three-term mayor, is pushing to build a youth sports complex on a 155-acre defunct golf course recently acquired in a land swap. He said he envisions a public-private partnership of some sort, suggesting the city should lean on its professional sports teams to foot some of the bill.

Laredo, Texas: City officials said the Buena Vista Sports Complex remains on schedule to open July 4. The $45M facility is expected to host PONY League and Perfect Game baseball tournaments at the same time when it debuts.

🏛️ Illinois’ Youth Sports Bill Is Halfway There

A bill establishing a youth sports commission under the Illinois Department of Human Services passed the state senate last week. It now heads to the state’s House of Representatives— it will become law if it passes in that chamber.

The bill is an initiative of Laureus Sport for Good USA, the domestic division of an international non-profit organization that invests in youth sports worldwide. The commission will work to make youth sports more accessible and equitable in the state, making annual reports to lawmakers.

👨‍🦰 Coaches Behaving Badly

A track and field coach in New Jersey allegedly assaulted a youth athlete.

Ruben Baerga, 62, was reportedly charged with simple assault, endangering the welfare of a child and cruelty and neglect of a child. He is accused of dragging the child by their ankle across the artificial turf at Westwood High in Bergen County; surveillance video footage of the incident reportedly exists.

Baerga is a volunteer coach for a youth team that participates in NJ Striders events, but the track organization said he is not affiliated with them.

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