Are today’s youth sport experts, coaches, and trainers stealing your money? Well, maybe they are not actually stealing your money, but I do hear increasingly more criticism directed toward so-called “experts” in youth sports that lead sports parents to believe their unique coaching is needed to help your child outpace the competition. While there are certainly credible coaches and youth sport leagues to consider, we do see many more people out there today claiming that they have the secret sauce by means of sport expertise, specific physical training, or even modern nutrition programs. Are there suddenly credible, qualified experts around every corner, or are more people today claiming knowledge that may be a bit bloated, or not present at all? Most of these experts, club teams, and related specialists don’t come cheap, making it important to get it right.
Exploring today’s youth sport options
Need to find a sports league for your child? No problem, most leagues run year-round these days. Looking for an elite club, one that will help your child separate from the pack? Well, there’s lots of those, too. And what about really drilling deep to find a specific position coach who knows all the nuance associated with that role on the field? Yup, you can find those folks around every corner as well. Could it really be this good?
While there appear to be almost as many experts in youth sports as there are kids playing youth sports, critics argue that many of these “experts” are simply good at marketing themselves. And with so many sport parents out there today desperately looking for an angle or the latest scoop, the sudden explosion of sport experts meets a budding, emotional need many parents seem to have. So, are there really as many experts out there as it seems, and do you need to explore these options for your child?
To answer the first question, when you talk to people in sports (i.e. coaches, administrators, and former players), you will soon learn that it is precisely this group of people that point the most criticism toward the smoke-and-mirrors they see with all the “experts” out there today. So while you will need to do your own research with respect to credibility, the real experts will tell you it is very wise to do so before spending a lot of money.
When it comes to whether you need sport expertise for your child to succeed in sports, the answer is somewhat nuanced. At the early ages, all kids really want is to have fun, move their bodies, and learn the rules of their sport(s) — no experts needed. As kids age, general coaching will still be enough for most kids, but for the few that have greater interest in a sport and/or greater athletic potential, it may not hurt to learn more about proper training or work with a coach who has a lot of experience in that sport. Notice, working with an expert is not something every kid needs to do!
Perhaps an easy way to help guide the process of selecting youth sport experts is to begin by understanding the realities of just how few kids make it in sports. For example, 95% of all high school student athletes will retire from sports once high school sports are over, and for those 5 out of 100 who do make it, most are attending a D3 school (no athletic scholarship money) or are a D1 walk-on (no money) or partial scholarship student athlete. With such long odds, you may want to explore other ways to spend your time and money compared to going all-in on sports.
Final thoughts
Helping your child attain the best sports training available is a great goal, but it is important to weigh your interest in expert training along with your child’s interest, general athletic abilities, and realities of actually going far in sports. Yes, the sports training field has certainly caught up to meet the demand of excited sport parents, but it is important to properly vett the trainers, coaches, and clinics you visit. Ask important questions, including their sport background, how long they have been in business, and how regularly they work with kids, and then take the time needed to make sure the decision you make is best for your child and unique situation.
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