Most Forms of Youth Sports Participation Declining

[MountainDon]

According to the National Sporting Goods Association, between 1998 and 2007, youth participation in many traditional sports dipped, while the number of skateboarders (and bowlers) spiked. Following is a peek at the 10-year trend;
    * Baseball: Down 32 percent
    * Basketball: Down 15 percent
    * Soccer: Down 15 percent
    * Volleyball: Down 20 percent
    * Skateboarding: Up 85 percent
    * Football: Up 29 percent
    * Bowling: Up 12 percent
    * Softball: Down 45 percent
    * Golf: Down 40 percent
    * Hockey: Down 29 percent
    * Skiing: Down 34 percent
    * Mountain biking: Down 23 percent

[glenn kangiser]

...hmm....independent thinkers??? 

[Redoverfarm]

I really think they push the youth too hard.  It is sort of like there own little game and the youth are their players.  My son a couple years back played baseball and football in the same year.  They went All Stars in baseball and that continued through most of the summer.  It turned out that he had 1 week out of the complete summer that he didn't have any sports before starting football.  He declined to play either the following year stating " I didn't have any time this year to do the things I wanted to do".  Kids need a break just like adults and after going to school for 8 months it is probably well deserving.

[muldoon]

I'd chalk some of that up to parent burnout and commercialization. 

When I was a kid we just went outside and played.  Now everything has to be organized.  You have to pay to join a league, pay for uniforms, pay for coaching, special trainers, pre game meetings, after game meetings, get to practice on time, games on saturdays at 8am, or out of town until 10pm, in many leagues no one is allowed to be better than anyone else,  blah blah, everyone plays, everyone wins.  Not fun for kids, not fun for parents.  It seems the only ones really into it are making it a defining characteristic of themselves.  One guy I work with has plans for his son to be a pro baseball player and brags about his special coaching with an ex-astro, some big deal invitation to some non-open league, and 300 dollar baseball bat.  He's 8. 

Yeah, I'd ride a skateboard instead too.