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:
🗣️ Co-Sponsor: Let Kids Play Act Needs Work
The bill targeting private equity’s involvement in youth sports is not necessarily a finished product, according to House co-sponsor Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-PA).
“We'll take ideas if that we think there's a place where this could drive out good investment,” Deluzio said on the Buying Sandlot podcast when asked about two of the bill’s more controversial aspects:
1) It classifies ALL private equity firms as “vulture” actors and bans them from the industry
2) It identifies so-called “vulture practices,” but solely targets capital structure and not the practices directly
“We want to pass this thing. We want to make a law that is workable, that works. And the goal of this is youth sports and youth sports access and affordability. So as we build this thing out, like we're gonna have conversation, we're going to have input. I want us to get a markup and a hearing. When you do that in a committee, you have stakeholders come and tell you about your legislation and what they're seeing. This is part of the sausage making of legislation that is a good and healthy thing.” — Deluzio
One area where Deluzio indicated there could be change: Allowing independent operators to take on PE investment to scale if the operators maintain control.
Some other highlights from the conversation:
Deluzio said he has received significant feedback from parents since introducing the bill, and “this has not fallen into the normal Democratic and Republican divide.”
“I'm hearing from parents all over the political map,” he said. “That's a good thing because it tells me the path forward is we can actually build a coalition to do something about what's going on in youth sports."
Deluzio also said he believes there should be more federal funding for youth sports.
"Congress should be supporting more construction and support for youth fields and activities. I've gotten applications in my congressional office for nonprofit sports leagues to support their facilities and we can't even support that and get it passed because of the rules and the appropriations committee in the House, they don't let us support those kinds of programs.
"I think that's foolish because again, this is one small revenue stream that could be there for these facilities. I think it's something, again, this matters for the country. We should be able to support nonprofits and local leagues who need to do this, who need the resources, and as you say, struggle to get people to volunteer because I think folks are stressed on their time all the time."
Last: The bill would put all PE firms on a two-year mandatory divestment shot clock if it passes. Deluzio said that term was included so Congress could provide a tool to effect change that was not "at the whim of an antitrust enforcer who might have a disagreement about broader antitrust principles."
I appreciate Rep. Deluzio coming on the show and taking questions that were probably more detailed than he was expecting to get.
Most notable to me was the following exchange:
Me: “[If] the practice occurs outside of PE, why not just go after the whole practice?”
Rep. Deluzio: “Well, I think if you look at the bill, we lay out these vulture practices, that I think if you're an actor, period, who's engaging in these in youth sports, you're gonna be forced to divest or do the other remedies that we have in the bill.”
The bill, as written, does two things: 1) Takes aim at “covered firms”— basically private equity, and 2) a whole bunch of “vulture practices” that run the gamut from monopolistic behaviors to standard youth sports business practices, many of which I don’t think deserve to be on the list. Any “covered firm” undertaking a “vulture practice” would be forced to divest its ownership stake.
But importantly, as written, the bill does nothing to an operator who is not owned by PE but undertakes a “vulture practice”. In other words, lawmakers are policing behavior differently - or not at all - depending on ownership structure.
Based on this exchange, I’m not certain Deluzio was aware of that mechanism in the bill.
That said, I came away with a positive impression of Deluzio as a reasonable person who is open to stakeholder input. It will be the industry’s job to find its voice and help educate lawmakers on the nuances of this space.
This is a must listen to podcast for any owner, operator, or investor in youth sports.
📆 EventConnect Exists To End Tournament Chaos— For Organizers And Families*
Tournament weekends have become mini supply chains: teams register, rosters change, schedules shift, hotels fill, and parents scramble.
Too many events still run things on spreadsheets, portals, and last-minute calls.
What we do (and why it’s different):
Centralize the weekend workflow: registration, rostering, payments, lodging, and real-time reporting.
Organizers can run end-to-end on EventConnect or integrate the systems they already use— no rip-and-replace required.
Either way, the data lands in one place so operators aren’t stitching together reports from multiple tools.
The “moment that changes outcomes”:
HousingConnect embeds hotel booking directly into checkout— capturing rooms at peak intent instead of sending families to a separate portal later.
Results can be up to 30% more room-night reservations and 24% savings on team hotel costs.
Proof of scale:
EventConnect powers 5,000 events and connects 30,000 hotels across 800 destinations.
Learn more about how EventConnect can help power your tournament right here.
*Sponsor
👥 Buying Sandlot Premium: Youth Sports Club Costs
We surveyed 60 club operators to learn more about participation, pricing, and what parents are asking for. The average club charges $2,800 per year. But how that breaks down across ownership structure, sport, and region might surprise you.
The full report will be available to premium members next week.
Upgrade now to get access to exclusive data:
📲 Onsides Launches New Tournament Tool
The logistics app for youth sports parents is rolling out Tournament Tracker, which founder Dave Yoo said is its front-end scheduling aggregation “on steroids.”
“The tournament side is just as chaotic, if not more chaotic, for parents,” Yoo told Buying Sandlot. “They don’t know which app to go to half the time. We’re aggregating, normalizing and making interoperable the logistics. Every weekend is crazy madness, so we’re just trying to help parents make sense of it all.”
Tournament Tracker will be connected with two major platforms — Exposure Events and SportsEngine Tourney — at launch.
Yoo said more will be added in the coming weeks and months, as Onsides’ existing infrastructure and tech allows it to work down the list of top platforms.
Parents can search future tournaments — there will be close to 10K to start — and connect them to their accounts. a banner will then appear on game day to bring them into the tracker. Onsides’ AI tools will also smart search management platforms to bring events into the tracker.
“The app automatically keeps parents up to date as a team’s tournament bracket unfolds, including game updates and schedule changes,” Yoo said.
Onsides exited beta in April. The app is free with no ads or subscriptions and has partnerships with Athletes Unlimited (private coaching) and EventPipe (lodging). Yoo said he would like to eventually partner directly with tournament operators.
“This is just another effort to have parents track everything they need to for youth sports in one app,” he said.
Disclosure: Buying Sandlot founder Kyle Scott is an Onsides advisor.
🏛️ Another House Hearing On Tap
More Capitol Hill talk.
A House Education and Workforce Committee subcommittee has scheduled a hearing — "Field of Fees: Private Equity’s Role in the Commercialization of American Youth Sports” — on Tuesday at 10:15 a.m. ET.
The Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education also hosted a general youth sports hearing last December.
The headline then was former FTC attorney Katherine Van Dyck’s fiery testimony — which turned out to be a preview of the LKPA.
The Financial Times wrote about PE and youth sports earlier this week. The piece was relatively uneventful, but the columnist wrote he asked several PE firms with a presence in the industry “if they would explain what value they were adding.”
Only one person — recent Buying Sandlot podcast guest Austin Ramos of Brand Velocity Group — responded.
The say-nothing strategy might make sense if there was a clock to run out, but that is not the case here.
This is a Republican-led hearing. None of the LKPA’s House sponsors are on the subcommittee. And only one Democratic member — Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) — has been particularly outspoken about private equity.
In other words: The interest in this issue is pretty widespread. The LKPA may not become law, but the conversation is not going to end anytime soon.
The industry’s bigger PE players should re-think their silence. If they won’t make their case, others will gladly steer the discourse.
📜 New Tax Bill Aims To Help Parents
Rep. Shomari Figures (D-AL) has introduced the Affordable Youth Enrichment Opportunities Act, which would provide a tax deduction for costs related to youth sports and other activities, including academics and the arts.
Up to $5K a year in deductions
Income thresholds; capped at $200K for joint filers
Expenditures are eligible until dependent’s 19th birthday
Would take effect for 2027 tax year
This is not the first proposed bill involving youth sports tax breaks, but it is the most taxpayer-friendly so far.
The PLAY Act — re-introduced by Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Mike Lawler (R-NY) earlier this year — would allow only up to $2K in youth sports expenses to go toward an expanded Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit.
That bill would also make fees related to for-profit leagues and private lessons ineligible. Figures’ bill has no such restrictions.
Lawler also introduced the Home Run For Kids Act in 2025, which would provide up to a $200 tax credit for youth sports equipment purchases; that bill also has income restrictions.
📊 Poll: Tax Credit
Which youth sports tax break would actually help families?
🇺🇸 The Latest On The Patriot Games
Freedom 250 has quietly announced a slew of details, but a bunch of unanswered questions remain.
The event will be held Aug. 9-11 and streamed on the ESPN app; ABC will then air the finals in a primetime special on Aug. 13
Open to athletes ages 14-17
“High-intensity challenges designed to test strength, speed, agility, teamwork, resilience and leadership”
Selection committee will choose participants
Boys, girls champions will receive $125K in scholarship funding
All expenses paid for athletes, chaperones
President Trump previously announced a male and female athlete from each state and territory competing in Washington D.C.
It is unclear if Freedom 250 is sticking to that participation format; the press release also did not name a location or venue.
(Freedom 250 did not respond to an inquiry prior to publication.)
The names of the selection committee members have not been revealed either. The website says there is an academic component and applicants are required to submit a video answering questions “about your values, leadership, character, and what being an American means to you.”
🧱 Facilities Arms Race: Another Naming Rights Deal
A new youth sports facility in Jonesboro, Arkansas, has struck a 15-year, $4.25M agreement with a local bank.
The 200K-square-foot First Community Bank Sportsplex is scheduled to open early next year.
12 basketball courts/24 volleyball courts
Olympic-sized natatorium with 1M, 3M diving; close to 1.3K capacity
Competition warm-up pool
35K-square-foot events center
The Sports Facilities Companies will manage the venue.
🔗 Youth Sports Links
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Good game.