This is Buying Sandlot — the only newsletter that focuses solely on the business of youth sports.
Let’s get to it.
In the email today:
💰 Elysian Park Ventures Snags Student Sports
The investment group helmed by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ ownership group has acquired the elite youth sports event operator from the combined PlayMetrics/Stack Sports company.
Terms were not disclosed. Student Sports runs Area Code Baseball, The Opening and the Elite 11 quarterback showcases; Elysian Park also has investments in LeagueApps, LOVB and a slew of other companies with ties to the youth sports industry.
It’s the second time PlayMetrics/Stack Sports has made a major divestiture since merging in June — it sold Steva, a professional sports video analysis tool, in October.
The combined company said it will “accelerate its product roadmap” to position its business as exclusively a youth sports management software platform. [‼️ Pure Play Alert™]
"This move allows us to concentrate on where we can create the most impact," PlayMetrics CEO Mike Doernberg said in a release. "Our vision is to become the essential platform that youth sports organizations rely on to run their operations every day - a true operating backbone built for long-term reliability."
Of note: While Stack Sports parent Genstar Capital made the acquisition this summer, the combined company appears to be flying the PlayMetrics banner moving forward. Stack owned Student Sports prior to the merger, but this transaction was billed as PlayMetrics selling to Elysian Park.
These Student Sports platforms may not have widespread household cachet, but a tremendous amount of future college and professional stars have rolled through over the years.
I’d be particularly bullish about Elite 11’s potential to become a crossover event. Quarterback is the most important position in American sports and Elite 11 is a vehicle for introducing the next wave and making stars. And it is relevant to any college football fan given most QBs end up at two or three schools in the transfer portal/NIL era.
MLB is already pretty involved in the Area Code Games between scouting the showcases and allowing the regional teams to use club names; it will be interesting to see if those connections grow now with the Dodgers ties.
🏟️ Buying Sandlot Summit 2026 Update: Early Bird Ticket Prices Increase In January
Early bird tickets are heavily discounted and will be increasing in January. If you want to lock in some end-of-year tax write-offs and take advantage of early bird pricing, now is the time.
There are less than 10 VIP tickets with access to the on-site hotel rooms available as of this writing. Those are going quick— and we are holding some back for sponsors.
Get early bird tickets right here.
Get VIP tickets right here.
If your organization would like group ticket pricing for 5 or more, or would like our sponsor deck, you can also contact [email protected].
🦚 On The SportsEngine Beat
Versant is in contact with “about 10 parties” that have serious interest in acquiring the youth sports management and streaming platform, according to The Wrap.
The entertainment and media outlet said roughly 80 potential suitors expressed initial interest in SportsEngine, but the field has since winnowed considerably.
It remains unclear if Versant will sell, according to the report.
The report also said the Comcast cable network spinoff company has valued SportsEngine in the $400M to $500M range, echoing a previous Bloomberg report.
📺 HS Football Showcase’s Rating Is In
Good, but not great.
Last week’s Overtime Nationals High School Football Championship drew 219K total viewers on ESPN2, according to USTVDB — good for a 0.07 Nielsen rating.
That is nowhere near the 709K audience/0.22 rating that Mater Dei (Calif.) and St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) drew back in August — ESPN’s most-watched high school football game in over a decade.
[As a comparison, the NFL Flag championships in July averaged 619k viewers.]
But St. Frances of Baltimore’s win over Utah’s Corner Canyon in the inaugural “national title” game still beat most high school football broadcasts in recent years — even on a Wednesday night in mid-December with little buildup and a backup participant.
More proof that elite youth sports has upside as a media property.
Something that stood out to me when looking at the ratings database: Broadcasts featuring public school powers — oftentimes an in-state matchup — can rate well and sometimes stronger than when elite independents like IMG are involved.
There could be a few reasons for that.
Many of those games were aired in August, when high school football is just kicking off and there is little/no competition from college ball and the NFL. Many also emanated from the South, where the passion for high school football may be at its highest.
But I also think it may be easier to sell quote-unquote traditional high school football to casual viewers than the new-age developmental programs that do not necessarily belong to a state governing body or compete in a state playoff structure.
(And I do wonder if the Bishop Sycamore debacle could still play a role.)
What’s going to be tough, though, is finding a way to harness those brand name public and private schools that shift to rigid conference and state commitments after the first month or so of the season.
For example: St. Joseph Regional finished No. 1 in the state here in New Jersey after upsetting Don Bosco Prep in the state championship game. I am 99.99% sure the NJSIAA would not have allowed SJR to play in Overtime’s event if asked — and I would imagine that is the case in most states. Corner Canyon was probably an exception, not a rule.
🔉 New Podcast: Youth Athletes United CEO Adam Geisler
Adam oversees Youth Athletes United, which owns franchise brands like Soccer Stars, Amazing Athletes and TGA. What’s unique is they all serve young kids that form the foundation of the sports pyramid.
Here are 3 quick takes from the interview:
1) Professionalizing rec
We write about this all the time here. So much of the investment focus in the industry goes toward the club, travel and high school level. But everyone gets their start somewhere and there remains a significant opportunity in professionalizing recreation experiences for kids of all ages.
2) Anything is a field
Youth Athletes United doesn’t need large soccer pitches or full-length fields. Rather, it’s able to use small spaces - even attached to bars and restaurants in some cases - to meet kids (and parents, in the case of bars!) where they are.
3) Younger age groups don’t need sport-specific expertise
Older kids need coaches with some degree of expertise in their sport as competition advances. But for 5-year-olds? Youth Athletes United can roll out a playbook for franchise owners and coaches to teach the basics of kicking a soccer ball or swinging a tennis racket— no collegiate or pro experience needed. This age-appropriate instruction scales much more easily than, say, 14U baseball— where quality coaching is harder to come by.
You can listen and subscribe to the Buying Sandlot podcast with the following links:
🤝 US Club Soccer Partners With IMG Academy’s Platforms
The non-profit organization has struck a multi-year deal with NCSA College Recruiting and Sports Recruits, which are owned by IMG.
The agreement integrates NCSA’s recruiting education, technology, and athlete support services directly into US Club Soccer’s national footprint, impacting hundreds of thousands of players annually.
Through the partnership, US Club Soccer will enhance its recruiting infrastructure across its premier events –including National Cup, NPL Finals, and all partner-operated events attended by college programs – by incorporating NCSA’s event technology, education, and lead-sharing processes.
IMG acquired Sports Recruits — effectively a social network for recruiting — earlier this year. The service said it assisted in the placement of 25% of freshman college athletes in 2024.
👨💻 Another Youth Sports Software Deal
Investment firm H3 Partners has bought Upper Hand, which provides software for youth sports facilities.
H3 is led by SaaS veterans who will take over as Upper Hand’s CEO and COO; the platform provides scheduling, registration, payments and other offerings.
🚨 Scammers Targeting Youth Sports Vendors
Thieves are allegedly impersonating police in North Carolina to collect bogus fees from vendors tied to youth sports.
The Iredell County Sheriff said the scammers research scheduled events and then approach vendors and request fraudulent payments via electronic payment apps, pretending to be cops associated with the events.
💼 Youth Sports Transactions Wire
Pixellot’s global head of baseball, David Shapiro, announced today on LinkedIn that he will be leaving the company:
Shapiro had served as Pixellot’s President of North America until June, when Rob DeSalvo - a Buying Sandlot podcast guest this summer (watch, listen) - took over that role.
At the time, Shapiro became Pixellot’s baseball head to “extend its innovation and partnerships in this key vertical”, which is dominated by GameChanger in the U.S.
Related:
🔗 Youth Sports Links
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Good game.