New Tech Prevents Roster Manipulation in Youth Sports

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

Just a beast of an email today, with a deep dive on facial recognition to prevent fraud at youth sports tournaments, further evidence of RED HOT trends, and LA ramps up youth initiatives ahead of the Olympics. And so much more.

Among the most noteworthy youth sports news stories in recent weeks:

Zorts Sports could have prevented both incidents from happening.

The company provides typical tournament bracketing, management, and scheduling tools.

And it now allows organizers to keep their events safe with ZortsID Flash Facial Recognition, a tool that confirms the identities of involved adults and ensures competitors are eligible.

Zorts has been used at over 11K events.

"Over the years, we had several tournament admins reach out to us seeking help for this problem they were having," CEO Spencer Grider told us. "Players, or sometimes entire teams, would show up to their events, lie about their age and compete in younger divisions."

Zorts “is not just preventing older kids from playing younger kids,” Grider said. It can also be used for coaches and vendors.

Clients can run background checks through a third-party provider that partners with Zorts. The service recently stopped a vendor who was a registered sex offender from attending a recent event.

ZortsIDs can also be used to keep tabs on adults who create issues at events — i.e. get in fights, mistreat officials, etc.

Grider said Zorts does not aspire to be a governing body. But it is working on a “Community Notes” function that would allow such information to be provided (with safeguards) to other tournament organizers so admins know who is coming to their event.

Grider said Zorts “checks every box with privacy law,” both on the federal and state levels.

Biometric data and personal information are stored in separate, unconnected locations.

A ZortsID is valid for a year. Documents are not retained long-term.

It’s all about the narrative.

The first article is from USA Today about declining boys sports participation rates, and the second is more of a press release from USA Basketball about its 2025 US Open Basketball Championships.

Both items can be true. And I (Kyle) spotted two Trend Watches™.

Trend 1: Underserved Communities and the Need for Better Coaching

The key line from the first article, which focuses heavily on former Pacer Anthony Davis’ and Jordan Brand Chairman Larry Miller’s calls for more boys sports participation:

According to Project Play’s most recent data, which is from 2022, overall youth sports participation was 54%— down from a rate of 56% in 2019.

But the decline is not shared evenly:

There is a very clear lag in this data. Never mind the post-pandemic impact likely still being a thing in 2022.

In other words, participation rates are now likely back to pre-pandemic levels and have probably surpassed them, with the overall youth sports business market increasing given the proportionality of higher-income families spending money (for better or worse, obviously).

Girls participation has also risen dramatically in recent years, further offsetting any overall participation rate declines.

Still, that doesn’t address the inequality gap widening in youth sports.

The article pointed to one possible reason for the boys' decline, especially in underserved communities:

Related: Philly needs better trained coaches

Trend 2: USA Basketball Focuses on Coach Certification

USA Basketball turned out a positive puff piece about its US Open tournament, and I noticed a couple of things about how it was framed:

What does gold licensed coach mean? “All coaches must hold a valid 2024-2025 USA Basketball Coach License throughout the entirety of the event, which requires passing a criminal background screen, completing SafeSport training and staying in good standing with USA Basketball. Any non-licensed coaches or bench personnel will not be allowed to sit or be on the team bench during competition and will not receive credential.”

We’ve written at length about USA Basketball’s commitment for more consistent coaching. Just another, albeit small, example here.

In short: coaching, coach verification, and girls sports are trends we now see everywhere.

To wit…

From their LinkedIn:

And look at how seamlessly this email is flowing together today…

The pitch/play calling technology company has announced a tie-up with USA Softball.

The communications system is most prominently used in Major League Baseball. PitchCom recently landed a partnership with Perfect Game, the baseball and softball development giant.

The technology will be used at major USA Softball events and by all national teams. It will also be made available to youth programs nationwide through several leasing packages.

Lawmakers in Illinois passed a $55B budget last week.

Tucked into the package: $40M in funding to build a high school and youth sports complex at Proviso West High in Hillside, a Chicago suburb.

At issue: The project also happens to be located in House Speaker Emanuel Welch’s district, which has generated criticism.

Advocates say the facility will be used for several sports — baseball, softball, soccer, tennis, volleyball and track and field — and also host community events.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker still has to approve the budget.

Sioux City, Iowa: A $5M, 65K-square-foot complex has been proposed by the Siouxland Sports Academy, a local youth sports non-profit. The venue would have:

Apparently $5M goes a long way in Western Iowa!

Benson, Nebraska: The Sherwood Foundation — led by Susie Buffett, the daughter of billionaire Warren Buffett — has provided at least $4M in grants to upgrade little league fields in the Omaha suburb.

Enid, Oklahoma: The city has entered into a contract to buy land that would be used for a planned $25M youth sports complex, but it does not yet have a deal to acquire the bulk of the necessary real estate. The proposed project would have 13 baseball fields plus four football and softball fields. Officials say it would be capable of hosting 100-team baseball tournaments and estimate each event would generate $1.5M in economic impact for the city, which sits about 90 minutes north of Oklahoma City and south of Wichita, Kansas.

The city-operated PlayLA Youth & Adaptive Youth Sports Program has launched a summer campaign providing dozens of low-cost activities at over 120 recreation centers and pools.

PlayLA is backed by a $160M investment by the organizing committee for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organizing Committee and the International Olympic Committee.

There will be a citywide celebration on July 14, marking three years until the start of the Summer Games.

The photo used for the announcement?

Flag football.

Meanwhile, Nike will launch its Toma El Juego soccer initiative in LA this month.

The campaign is "a youth-led street soccer platform designed to unleash the joy, freedom and creative expression of the game through neighborhood tournament play and community-driven experiences."

There will be a knockout street soccer tournament with youth teams from eight LA neighborhoods.

Nike said it expects to expand the program to other cities next year, when the U.S. will host the World Cup.

New York is already well underway in its efforts…

NYSCI — backed by MLS side New York City FC — cut the ribbon on the first of 26 new mini pitches in the city last week.

The $3M initiative originally established 50 pitches and community-based soccer programming, but it will add another 26 pitches in conjunction with next year’s World Cup.

Over 20K kids have been impacted by the initiative so far. Etihad Airlines and Capital Rx are corporate sponsors.

This is a big-time gig:

The VP, Strategic Partnerships reports directly to the Chief Operating Officer of IMG Academy and partners closely with the Chief Commercial Officer to drive new business opportunities. This position is responsible for driving long-term revenue growth through strategic partnerships. This is a pivotal role in cultivating and optimizing strong relationships with sponsors that align with IMG Academy’s goals, while expanding the brand’s visibility and influence.

This role will work closely with internal teams, external partners, and senior leadership to lead the mutually beneficial sponsorship packages that enhance student experience and create innovative corporate partnerships to drive long-term value.

The full job listing can be found on LinkedIn.

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Good game.