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:
📊 Project Play Releases Annual Report
Youth sports participation has rallied from a pandemic era dip.
More kids are playing than at any time pre-2019, according to industry and government data cited in the Aspen Institute’s Project Play State of Play 2025 report.
55.4% of kids ages 6-17 played sports in 2023 (federal)
65% of kids ages 6-17 tried sports in 2024 (SFIA)
6% YoY participation increase for ages 6-17 in 2024 (SFIA)
But ages 13-17 saw a 3% participation decline YoY (SFIA)
A few other participation takeaways and notes from the report:
63×30 progress: Fourteen states and the District of Columbia hit 63% participation in 2023, seven years ahead of Aspen’s goal to hit the benchmark nationally by 2030. Three more states were at 62% and half the country (24 states) was at 60%.
Surprising laggers: Nevada had the nation’s lowest participation rate despite being the nation’s fifth-fastest growing state according to the 2020 census. Florida and Texas were bottom-5 in participation nationally despite adding the most people of any state according to the census.
Room for growth: Utah had a 17% participation gap between boys and girls — the third-largest in the country. It will be interesting to see how quickly that disparity narrows — and maybe turns the other direction? — between the state being the fastest-growing in the U.S., the investments ahead of the 2034 Winter Games in Salt Lake City and the presence of Utah Jazz/Mammoth owner Ryan Smith.
Push and pull: Soccer participation ran 6.4% ahead of flag football participation among kids ages 6-12 in 2012. That gap was narrowed to 3.5% in 2024. Something to keep in mind as girls flag continues to explode and boys flag grows as well.
Pickleball is trickling down: 2.2M kids ages 6-12 played pickleball in 2024 — double the 2022 figure. And participation jumped 157% YoY among kids ages 13-17.
🏈 The Game Day Operating System Built Specifically For Flag Football*
Flag50 powers live scoring, schedules, standings and brackets across multi-field leagues and tournaments— delivering a consistent, real-time experience for operators, families, and fans all from a single link.
Flag50 works with major flag brands like:
NFL Flag
Under the Lights
Friday Night Lights
Built for speed and scale, Flag50 replaces manual scoring spreadsheets and fragmented tools with a centralized platform designed for HQ-level rollout across regions and events.
What’s next?
Flag50 is expanding beyond scoring to build a unified media and data layer for flag football.
What’s that mean?
Live streaming embedded directly into games
AI-generated highlight clips tied to scoring events
Athlete profiles with stats and game history
Performance data across seasons and tournaments
These layers increase engagement, create new sponsorship inventory, and establish long term digital value at the HQ level without adding operational complexity at the league level.
Flag50 is helping modernize how flag football is operated, scaled and experienced.
The Flag Football Operating System. Built for flag. Built for the future.
Learn more about how Flag50 can help your league right here.
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🏟️ Buying Sandlot Summit Speaker Unveil
Each newsletter, we’re going to unveil a speaker, as we aim to put together the most compelling list of speakers and panelists in the history of the youth sports industry.
A Buying Sandlot podcast guest, Jordan recently partnered with Shore Capital Partners to form RISE Partners and expand the NY Empire Baseball ethos to more locations and more sports. Jordan is a captivating speaker. He’ll be on stage in Philly, April 14-15, 2026.
He will be joined at the event by previously announced speakers: John Stewart (CEO, Fastbreak AI) and Aman Loomba (SVP Product, GameChanger).
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].
🎥 ICYMI: Pixellot Partners With GameChanger
From yesterday's breaking news send: The Dick’s Sporting Goods-owned youth sports management and streaming platform has partnered with the AI-automated camera firm to outfit youth baseball and softball fields nationwide with Pixellot’s SinglePlay cameras, which are designed for rec competition.
Cameras will be fixed at facilities
Coaches or parents will activate them by scanning a QR code
Game streams will appear in the GameChanger app without setup
Pixellot’s tech will deliver automatic highlights and content to families
Fans at home can watch live streams after a parent or coach activates the camera by scanning the QR code at the field
GameChanger will offer personalized athlete and team experiences in the future
GameChanger says it will cover hardware costs; Pixellot will cover installation for a limited number of early-adopting rec leagues.
🏃♂️ We Know A Bit More About ‘Patriot Games’
President Donald Trump has provided more details about the national high school sports competition slated for next year as part of the semiquincentennial celebration.
The Patriot Games will be held sometime in the fall and will be “an unprecedented four-day event featuring the greatest high school athletes — one young man and one young woman from each state and territory,” the president said in a video.
Democrats were quick to draw “Hunger Games” comparisons on social media.
There is still no word on what sports will be involved. Trump previously said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would oversee the event, but it is not clear if that remains the case.
⚽️ LakePoint Sports Launches Soccer Initiative
The mega-complex in Georgia announced the LakePoint Soccer Initiative, a five-year plan "designed to elevate the sport and engage fans" as the U.S. hosts the men's World Cup this year and the women's World Cup in 2031 (FIFA will formally award the latter in April).
The LakePoint Soccer Initiative is an immersive slate of programs encompassing competition, youth development, community engagement, and technology. Highlights include strategic relationships with global, national, regional, and local soccer clubs, organizers, and brands; elite tournaments, camps, clinics, and showcases that attract top youth clubs and collegiate scouts; hands-on coaching and training clinics featuring licensed instructors and guest coaches; player appearances by current and former professional athletes; on-site testing of new soccer gear and equipment; fan-forward experiences tied to the countdown to the World Cup; and expanded media coverage through broadcasts and livestreams. These offerings will leverage LakePoint’s 1,300+ acre campus to create a dynamic environment built for both elite competition and community participation.
LakePoint has 11 outdoor pitches and 12 indoor futsal courts.
An additional note of interest: U.S. Soccer Federation has set a goal that every kid in the country will "have a safe place to play within 15 minutes of where they live," according to a quote from Shari Summers, the foundation's CGO for soccer, in the LakePoint release.
The fed is also aspiring to make "soccer available in every school across the country" by 2030 through the Soccer Forward Foundation.
📝 Youth Sports News + Notes
Virginia Tech’s Helmet Lab has rated youth hockey helmets for the first time. Thirty-three helmets were graded on the 5-star scale with 16 combined four- and five-star grades. VT said there are 800K youth hockey players in Canada and the U.S. and 275K in Europe.
Valhallan — a youth-focused esports training facility — has acquired events company XP League. The merger will create “the largest unified youth esports academy in North America," according to the companies. The combined business will have over 50 locations in 20 states and boast hundreds of middle and high school teams.
The International Chess Federation will allow Belarusian and Russian youth competitors back into its events. The move comes after the International Olympic Committee recommended an end to the three-plus-year ban due to the war in Ukraine for youth athletes.
FCS-level Weber State has named Eric Kjar as its new head football coach. Why is that mentioned here? Because Kjar led Utah’s Corner Canyon High in the Overtime Nationals High School Football Championship a week earlier.
🐊 Update On Major Florida Project
Pinellas County has signed off on $250K in funds to investigate the subsurface of a former landfill set to be the site of a sprawling complex helmed by The Sports Facilities Companies.
That work now has added importance.
Visit St. Pete-Clearwater CEO Brian Lowack conceded the proposed $150M to $200M project is in a holding pattern due to stakeholder uncertainty about what lies below the 275-acre lot, according to St. Pete Catalyst.
In other words: Too much public and not enough private in the partnership at the moment.
SFC’s geotechnical subcontractor will do the investigatory work and should be done by March. Lowack said he expects a final proposal by the summer.
Initial plans called for the complex to sit on 95 acres. The investigation could open the door to develop even more acreage. Or it could go the other way.
🔗 Youth Sports Links
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Good game.