In the world of youth sports, a new playbook is being written
By some estimates, youth sports brings in $20 billion a year in economic activity in the United States, and private club sports have had a big hand in changing the game
Updated: 8:00 PM EST Feb 25, 2025
OF YOUTH SPORTS. IN THE WORLD OF YOUTH SPORTS, A NEW PLAYBOOK IS BEING WRITTEN. A LANDSCAPE HAS CHANGED DRAMATICALLY FROM WHEN I WAS A KID. I FEEL LIKE WE’RE AT A DIFFERENT YOUTH SPORT EVERY NIGHT OF THE WEEK. BY SOME ESTIMATES, YOUTH SPORTS BRINGS IN $20 BILLION A YEAR IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY IN THE UNITED STATES, AND CLUB SPORTS HAVE HAD A BIG HAND IN CHANGING THE GAME. THERE’S HUNDREDS UPON HUNDREDS OF ORGANIZATIONS AND TEAMS. IT’S BEEN A BIG TIME THIRST FOR PEOPLE. I THINK ACROSS SO MANY SPORTS. CLUB TEAMS OFFER YEAR ROUND TRAINING. I JUST LIKE, TRY TO LIKE KEEP GETTING BETTER EVERY DAY AT PRACTICES, AT GAMES ELITE COMPETITION. WE PLAY WITH GOOD TEAMS AND WE GET GOOD COMPETITION. AND FOR SOME, A PATHWAY TO COLLEGE. THE OPPORTUNITIES TO BE ABLE TO PLAY COLLEGE BASKETBALL FOR FREE IS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. UNLIKE MANY TOWNS IN SCHOOL SPONSORED PROGRAMS, CLUB SPORTS GO BEYOND SEASONS, GIVING ATHLETES A CHANCE TO FACE TOP TALENT ALL YEAR ROUND, SAYS EIGHTH GRADER MADDY ABA. FOR A TOWN TEAM LIKE WE ONLY HAVE ONE GAME A WEEKEND, BUT FOR CLUB, WE HAVE A TOURNAMENT EVERY WEEKEND, SO I’LL BE PLAYING LIKE FOUR GAMES A WEEK INSTEAD OF JUST ONE. CLUB TEAMS ARE FORMED BASED ON TALENT, SKILL AND EXPERIENCE. FOR ATHLETES LIKE EIGHTH GRADER LANEY LEE, THE BENEFITS ARE CLEAR. I GOT TO SHOOT MORE, DRIBBLE MORE, AND I JUST GOT TO PLAY WITH MORE GIRLS WHO UNDERSTAND AND LOVE THE GAME AS MUCH AS I DO. AND FOR THE MANY PARENTS WHO SHUTTLE THEIR KIDS TO AND FROM CLUB PRACTICES AND GAMES, OFTEN HOURS AWAY, IT FEELS LIKE A SECOND JOB. BUT I WOULDN’T CHANGE THE EXPERIENCE AT ALL. IT CAN BE THE HOPE OF COLLEGE RECRUITMENT OPPORTUNITIES OR MORE SIMPLY, FOR THEIR CHILD JUST TO BE A PLAYER IN THE GAME. DO YOU FEEL LIKE THERE’S PRESSURE TO PLAY CLUB SPORTS? I THINK THERE’S A LITTLE OF THAT. ONE ORGANIZATION AT THE HEART OF THIS MOVEMENT IS MIDDLESEX MAGIC, A YOUTH BASKETBALL CLUB BASED IN WELLESLEY. FOUNDED IN 1993, THE CLUB IS NOW LED BY FORMER CELTICS ASSISTANT BASKETBALL COACH MICHAEL CROTTY JR, WHO TOOK OVER AFTER HIS FATHER’S PASSING. THE MAGIC HAS EVOLVED QUITE A BIT, STARTING WITH TWO TEAMS, MIDDLESEX MAGIC HAS GROWN TO MORE THAN 70 ACROSS ALL LEVELS AND AGE GROUPS. MORE THAN 600 MAGIC PLAYERS HAVE GONE ON TO COMPETE AT THE COLLEGIATE LEVEL. TO BE ABLE TO HELP ONE KID BECOME A COLLEGE ATHLETE EVERY TIME IT HAPPENS, THE JOY I GET IS SO REAL. GOOD MOVE ALEX. ATHLETES LIKE 19 YEAR OLD ALEX WILKINS HAVE THE MAGIC SPIRIT. HE PLAYS ON MAGIC’S SPONSORED ELITE UNDER ARMOR TEAM. WHAT IS IT THAT YOU LOVE ABOUT BASKETBALL? BASKETBALL HAS BEEN AMAZING TO ME. IT’S GOTTEN ME TO SCHOOL FOR FREE. SO IT MEANS A LOT TO ME FOR SURE. AT SIX FOOT FIVE, WILKINS EARNED 25 COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP OFFERS. YEP. 25. LET ME SEE WHAT YOU GOT. LET ME SEE. HE’S HEADED TO FURMAN UNIVERSITY. WHOSE BASKETBALL PROGRAM COMPETES AT THE DIVISION ONE LEVEL. MOM AND DAD MADE A LOT OF SACRIFICES FOR ME, SO I’M EXCITED THAT I’M. I’M ABLE TO GIVE BACK. ALEX CREDITS HIS FAMILY FIRST FOR HIS SUCCESS, BUT ALSO THE OPPORTUNITIES PROVIDED BY CLUB SPORTS, LARGELY MIDDLESEX MAGIC. IT’S OPEN DOORS THAT I NEVER THOUGHT WOULD OPEN. IF I’M BEING TOLD I SHOULD CHANGE MY LIFE, I’VE MET SOME SOME REALLY GREAT PEOPLE WATCH FILM. WE HAVE. WE HAVE SCOUT REPORTS. WE’RE ALWAYS TOGETHER. WE’RE ALWAYS EATING TOGETHER. DO YOU THINK CLUB SPORTS ARE NECESSARY TO PLAY AT THE COLLEGIATE LEVEL? YES, MA’AM. I PLAYED IN FRONT OF MAYBE 30 COACHES A GAME THIS SUMMER. CROTTY KNOWS A LOT OF PEOPLE. HE’S BUILT THOSE RELATIONSHIPS OVER THE YEARS. IF YOU THINK YOU’RE A COLLEGIATE ATHLETE, YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY BE PLAYING FOR A CLUB. BUT CLUB SPORTS AREN’T CHEAP, AND MOST FAMILIES HAVE TO PAY TO PLAY. INVESTING THOUSANDS A YEAR IN TRAVEL, TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT. THE 2022 ASPEN INSTITUTE’S STATE OF PLAY REPORT SAYS PARENTS OF KIDS IN ELITE CLUB PROGRAMS OFTEN SPEND $12,000 OR MORE PER YEAR. AND FOR EVERY SUCCESS STORY, LIKE ALEX, MANY FAMILIES INVEST BIG BUCKS IN ENDLESS TIME INTO CLUB SPORTS FOR ATHLETES WHO MAY NEVER PLAY AT THE NEXT LEVEL. WHY? SO WE HAVE THOSE INSPIRATIONS LIKE OUR KIDS ARE GOING TO GO PRO, BUT THEN WE COME TO A REALIZATION THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN AS LONG AS THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE PLAYING AND THEY BUILD THAT CONFIDENCE IN THEMSELVES, THAT’S WHAT WE LOOK FOR. I’M HAVING A BLAST. I TALK TO PARENTS THAT I KNOW WHOSE KIDS ARE OUT OF COLLEGE AND THEY SAY, HEY, YOU KNOW WHEN YOU’RE IN IT, SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN FEEL LIKE IT’S A LITTLE OVERWHELMING. BUT I’M THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, 3 OR 4 █YEARS FROMNOW, I DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M GOING TO DO ON WEEKENDS. GIVEN THE BILLIONS SPENT ON THESE PROGRAMS, THEY’RE LIKELY HERE TO STAY. STILL, A GROWING NUMBER OF PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS ARE SEEKING ALTERNATIVES. WHAT IS BEING SOLD RIGHT NOW IS THAT THE ONLY WAY FOR MY KID TO PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS IS TO REALLY DEEPLY INVEST IN ONE SPORT, PICK THE CLUB SPORT, PICK THE THE SPECIALTY TRAINING, WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE. AND ROBERT AND I BOTH CHALLENGE THAT AS WHAT IS REAL FOR KIDS IN TERMS OF THEIR DEVELOPMENT. AND WE’LL HAVE MORE ON THAT PERSPECTIVE COMING UP AFTER THE BREAK. WE MENTIONED, OF COURSE, YOUTH SPORTS, BIG BUSINESS. WE ESTIMATED ABOUT $20 BILLION OF ECONOMIC IMPACT, BUT SOME ESTIMATES SAY THAT’S AS HIGH AS $30 BILLION, $30 BILLION WITH PRIVATE EQUITY FIRMS BUYING UP TEAMS AND FACILITIES. AND WHILE THIS COULD PROVIDE MORE RESOURCES, IT COULD ALSO MEAN HIGHER COSTS FOR FAMILIES AND MORE OF A FOCUS ON PROFIT VERSUS PLAYER DEVELOPMENT. SO MUCH ABOUT THE MONEY C
In the world of youth sports, a new playbook is being written
By some estimates, youth sports brings in $20 billion a year in economic activity in the United States, and private club sports have had a big hand in changing the game
Updated: 8:00 PM EST Feb 25, 2025
Middlesex Magic, a youth basketball club out of Wellesley, has been shaping top talent since 1993. What started with just two teams has grown to over 70, helping more than 600 players reach the collegiate level — including 100 in the past three years.
Middlesex Magic, a youth basketball club out of Wellesley, has been shaping top talent since 1993. What started with just two teams has grown to over 70, helping more than 600 players reach the collegiate level — including 100 in the past three years.