participation in sports and activities is high

0 +
Students participated in athletics and extracurricular activities

According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, 2018-19 marked the third-highest ever total of participants. 1

70

total different sports

57% Male
43% Female
0%
Top 5 Sports (Boys)
  1. Football (1,006,013)
  2. Track & Field (605,354)
  3. Basketball (540,769)
  4. Baseball (482,740)
  5. Soccer (459,077)
Top 5 Sports (Girls)
  1. Track & Field (488,267)
  2. Volleyball (452,808)
  3. Basketball (399,067)
  4. Soccer (394,105)
  5. Fast Pitch (362,038)

Health and Life Benefits of Organized Sport

"Participation in competitive youth sports ‘spills over’ to occupationally advantageous traits that persist across a person’s life.”
Kevin M. Kniffin
Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management2

Higher Education is Four Times as Likely

Student athletes are four times as likely as non-athletes to have any postsecondary education.

Full Time Employment is More Likely

Student athletes are more likely to be employed, employed full time and earn a higher income.

Former Student Athletes Earn More

Former student athletes earn higher salaries at age 30 (signficantly higher).

0 %
of female executives played sports in middle, high or post-secondary school. 4
A third of all aged 2-19 are overweight or obese
0%
If all teens played sports, obesity would drop by
0%
Teens on 3+ teams reduce their obesity risk by
0%
"Team sport participation had the strongest and most consistent inverse association with weight status."
Keith M. Drake
Hood Center for Children and Families

Activities face never-ending budget challenges

Pay to Play is the New Norm

Over 60% of children who play school sports had an athletic pay-to-play fee. The average cost for school athletic fees was $126 per participating child. Add another $275 in equipment, travel, and other sports-related items for an average total of $401 per child.5

0 %
Average percentage of an overall school district's budget allocated to sports
Only 30%
of lower-income parents report their child participates in middle or high school sports.
Only0%
Compared to 51% of higher-income parents.

Fees Prevent Some From Playing

1 in 7 parents whose children did not play middle or high school sports cited cost as the reason for not participating.5

Communities Rally Around Those Who Help

High School Sports - 500M Fans Strong

There are over 2 million high school sporting events per year and it is estimated that the total attendance is over 500 million. 7

0
Million households with people who attended a high school sports event 8

63% are hopeful businesses will take the lead to drive change

on social and environmental issues, in the absence of government regulation 10

68% rank giving back to the community as important

when asked to rank company attributes, more important than price (44%) 9

87% will purchase a product when a company stands up

for an issue that the purchaser views as important and cares about 10

1. NFHS Annual High School Athletics Participation Survey (2019) 2. Want to succeed in business? Then play high school sports (2014) 3. Berrett, 2006  4. Oppenheimer Funds study (2002) 5. C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health 7. NFHS (2011) 8. Statista (2018) 9. How Corporate Social Responsibility Influences Buying Decisions (2019) 10. 2017 Cone Communications CSR Study (2017)