The Middle Class is being priced out of sports

[Ivanstone]

By "here" I meant the forum, not life. Sorry for the lack of clarity, that's my fault.

I guess I don't know if there's an effect on the margins. Maybe. Probably, I suppose. I just don't really buy the handwringing of the OP article.

The article is pretty straightforward. The only problem with it is the cited report should probably breakdown sports played by economic class. Basketball has shown an increase in play but tackle football, soccer and cycling have seen declines. I can see why football has seen a decline. It requires specialized equipment and its not good for player health. Cycling also requires equipment but America is not especially friendly to non-car transportation in general. Soccer I find completely baffling.

[Spectral]

The article is pretty straightforward. The only problem with it is the cited report should probably breakdown sports played by economic class. Basketball has shown an increase in play but tackle football, soccer and cycling have seen declines. I can see why football has seen a decline. It requires specialized equipment and its not good for player health. Cycling also requires equipment but America is not especially friendly to non-car transportation in general. Soccer I find completely baffling.

The phrase "priced out" is mostly what I object to. With the exception of actually expensive sports like cycling or hockey, people can pretty much play what they want and the cost of league play and other barriers just doesn't matter.

Soccer, I assume, relates to the whole traveling team league culture. That I really would expect to see large effects on. Poor American kids just don't play soccer much. There's no real barrier, they just don't.

[Ivanstone]

because kids rather play video games, IE e sports and esports in schools has grown

Esports require specialized equipment and some sports have seen increases in play.

[PACOX]

I've been out of high school for a minute and it's always been a thing. If you wanted a chance to play you needed to go to camp, which were expensive. We 'subsidized' ours with cookouts and car washes, but that only worked in an area where people look out for the local schools.

Then if you wanted to play you had to be to afford not working as opposed to morning, evening practices and trainings. Not granted to the less fortunate who have help in their household or help themselves.

- - - Updated - - -

because kids rather play video games, IE e sports and esports in schools has grown

On the other hand football has always been the biggest hs sport but less kids are playing because schools can't/won't update their equipment and higher a trainer. It's not worth screwing yourself up for four years of fun.

[Kokolums]

For almost the entire history of this country, sport involved people just getting together and starting up something among friends. You don't need a supermassive high school infrastructure. When I was a kid, after dinner, everyone ran out into the street, grabbed a stick and a rock and played stickball. Maybe someone had a baseball. You needed no equipment, no supervision, no massive high school administration. Just good friends and a good time.

This idea that you need to pour thousands of dollars into your kids sports is an abomination.

[Ivanstone]

For almost the entire history of this country, sport involved people just getting together and starting up something among friends. You don't need a supermassive high school infrastructure. When I was a kid, after dinner, everyone ran out into the street, grabbed a stick and a rock and played stickball. Maybe someone had a baseball. You needed no equipment, no supervision, no massive high school administration. Just good friends and a good time.

This idea that you need to pour thousands of dollars into your kids sports is an abomination.

Organized sports for kids is not anything new. Its been going on since the 1800's. Some require more investment than others. This topic isn't about casual sports you play with your buddies.

[unbound]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/uneven-...-youth-sports/

I think a future where high school sports is only for the rich is a bleak future indeed.

Why are vast numbers of Americans blind to inequality?

It isn't only sports. The same is happening for other activities such as music.

You want to be competitive in a sport with the potential to get a scholarship? You will have to sign up for off-season leagues in most cases.

You want to be competitive in music with the potential to get a scholarship? You will have to sign up for various competitions and have pretty consistent tutoring.

I'm starting to see fees for various other activities (e.g science equipment) popping up now too.

I laugh at the notion of $700 average. In my area, it adds up to a few thousand each year (and that was for a sport with rather minimal gear) for sports or music.

As for the schools charging for sports (and music as well) now, that is a result of too many places voting for Republicans to their local city / county councils and school boards. Since they refuse to tax the rich properly, there isn't enough tax money to pay for things, and the new game (relatively speaking) is to provide minimal funding to all schools in the district with the school board and city / county council knowing full well that the schools with rich parents will be able to pay all the fees without blinking and the schools with poor parents will just have to do without (and they get to claim equal treatment in the process because far too many people are either not involved enough to understand this or too stupid to think through what is really going on around them).

At the end of the day, this is an effort by people like Betsy Devos to so thoroughly gut public education that only the rich will receive education that has any value. As for the rest of the public, to paraphrase Tron, "Those of you who continue to profess a belief in the value of public education will receive the standard substandard training, which will result in your eventual elimination."

[Mihalik]

sip.

You might struggle with this concept, but the standard of living in Spain is higher than in the US.

The quality of your life is simply better here.

As despite the income differences there are these things called social life, your health, the ability to retire, the ability to take time off from work etc.

Little things. Then there are things like, the food is better, various forms of social ills like homophobia, sexism are less present. Public safety and sense of personal security are higher.

[Spectral]

You might struggle with this concept, but the standard of living in Spain is higher than in the US.

The quality of your life is simply better here.

As despite the income differences there are these things called social life, your health, the ability to retire, the ability to take time off from work etc.

Little things. Then there are things like, the food is better, various forms of social ills like homophobia, sexism are less present. Public safety and sense of personal security are higher.

I'd snip the data if I were moving those wealth-related goalposts too.

The jamon and manchego are good though, I agree on that much anyway.

[Lynarii]

This is something that they've been talking about a lot here in Canada specifically with regards to hockey.

What has been happening here has nothing to do with a lack of interest in the sport. It has to do with the competitiveness of it. To play in University you need to have been on a Junior team. To get on a Junior team you have to have been on a Midget team. To get in Midget you need to have been on a Bantam team. All the way down to Tyke teams for 5 year olds. These are all competitive leagues involving at least inter-city touring. There are pre-teen summer training camps for goodness sakes. It's not 'a bunch of kids playing a sport and having fun', it's a complete lifestyle that they dedicate themselves to starting younger than they were capable of making decisions for themselves, and if you don't keep up you get left behind. That costs a LOT of money to support.

It is not an exaggeration to say that children's hockey is taken seriously enough here that people have been murdered over it. If money can buy an advantage, then everyone spends that money or they don't play.

[Vargulf the Happy Husky]

i get the overall argument, but a person who is smart with their money can do pretty well with 35-45k a year.

i played middle school and high school football. wrestled and did track in high school too. it was all free. pads were provided, singlets were provided, shot puts were provided. its been 15 years of course, but i can't see how these traditional sports could be considered expensive.

it's when you get into the all year long basketball and baseball teams that shit gets pricey, or the cheerleading competitions that aren't tied to cheering for a school team. since they aren't school related and you're just using your school as your team identity, it should cost money.

my taxes pay for the school related sports and i'm good with that.

[Self Inflicted Wounds]

I don't know, I wrestled in high school. It was completely free, except for time. They made us volunteer at fundraising events, and we always had to move our own equipment, and clean up after ourselves. The fundraising paid for our equipment, and the bus, and gas needed to travel.

I'm not saying all sports are as cheap, (the mats are expensive as all get out), but some of the other sports teams at my school didn't have to do fundraisers. I think Basketball/Football?Baseball were covered by school funds.

Edit: I just remembered the only thing the school didn't officially supply were the shoes; but they did have a bunch of old "donated" shoes that former wrestled left behind. So if you wanted new shoes that fit the best, you'd have to buy them.

[smityx]

Where have you been the last 30 years? The "Middle Class" is priced out of everything. Thanks, Boomers.

Longer than that. I remember my mother struggling to come up with the $20 ($45 in 2019 inflation)to get me signed up for little league back in 1985.

[Flarelaine]

Wrong lesson. The politicians learned from 1929 that maybe its a bad idea to fuck the poor and let rich assholes do whatever they want.

The politicians who took those lessons are gone, though, and we have a crop that doesn't see why not.

[Ihavewaffles]

People think sports is just about monies? No, it's also about winning mentality something sorely lacking in millenials to win at all costs..

I'll give an example, tennis, why aren't senior players like Nadal threatened by younger players? Every generation replaced previous ones, yet this time it's not happening...new players that have potential to be #1 Dimitrov care just about being in the game, not do the extra mile, care about instagram, doing commercials n shit...
Before being #2 or below was considered a failure...
Now only care about winning x amount of tournaments to stay relevant

[AeneasBK]

Ugh, plebs.

[The Butt Witch]

People think sports is just about monies? No, it's also about winning mentality something sorely lacking in millenials to win at all costs..

I'll give an example, tennis, why aren't senior players like Nadal threatened by younger players? Every generation replaced previous ones, yet this time it's not happening...new players that have potential to be #1 Dimitrov care just about being in the game, not do the extra mile, care about instagram, doing commercials n shit...
Before being #2 or below was considered a failure...
Now only care about winning x amount of tournaments to stay relevant

Tennis is probably the only sport where you don't have to win in order to get a prize.

"Jimbob was eliminated in the semi-finales, but leaves with a prize of $100.000."

FOR WHAT?! LOSING?!

[prwraith]

i will be controversial but ... inequality is good.

it gives people motivation to move forward and have clear goals.

You're assuming it's possible for the majority to get out of poverty. If everyone below 75K income had "clear goals and motivation" as you put it...would it really help them that much? Or would an inherently unequal system beat them down?

- - - Updated - - -

People think sports is just about monies? No, it's also about winning mentality something sorely lacking in millenials to win at all costs..

Ok boomer...

[Vash The Stampede]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/uneven-...-youth-sports/

I think a future where high school sports is only for the rich is a bleak future indeed.

Why are vast numbers of Americans blind to inequality?

This has more to do with parents who either have no time or don't want to pay for medical expenses when their children gets injured. Plus the children themselves don't want to do it either. I know when I was in school that I injured myself very horribly doing sports, and lots of people I know still have injuries from high school sports that plague their bodies to this day. I'm lucky I don't, but I know people that are constantly on pain killers because of some high school sports injury.

Also, the sports industry loses from this more than anyone. Without growing up in school doing sports, most people don't give a crap about watching sports and subsisting on certain teams they enjoy. Most people I know that enjoy watching sports have participated in it during high school. Those people have walls of plastic trophies that nobody has and will ever care about but themselves, and is the reason that these people spend money on sporting events, which is to give their plastic trophies meaning.

[Fincayra]

Wouldn't it be the opposite? A lot of used instruments sitting in music shops that they can't sell?

I for one would love it if instrumental music programs were as well funded as sports programs in schools. With the exception of marching band, band is safe, educational, and teaches a child discipline.