Parents spend more than $40 billion annually on their children’s sports activities, according to the Aspen Institute’s latest parent survey data. This is up 46% since 2019.
In an increasingly complex youth sports landscape, community and school teams are still the most common setting for participation, but 17% of parents now identify travel and club sports as their child’s primary setting.
Though the price tag of club sports may create barriers to entry for some families, it buys expert coaching, year-round play and better competition for those dreaming of collegiate athletics.
Recruitment Comes with a Price Tag
For baseball, basketball, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming or volleyball athletes, club play is essential to getting noticed by college recruiters.
In 2019, 94% of NCAA softball players reported playing on a club team in high school. The same is true for 91% of NCAA volleyball players.
Kevin Campbell and his wife, Danielle, own Hot Shotz Volleyball Club, one of eight girls’ volleyball clubs in the Colorado Springs area. He says recruiting from clubs is more efficient for colleges.
“If they go to a high school game, they’re seeing 20 kids, but they go to a club tournament or a national qualifier … and they’re seeing thousands and thousands of kids in one weekend,” he says.
In the Pikes Peak region, volleyball club team dues can cost $1,200 to $4,400 for one season, depending on the club and level of play. Add travel expenses, equipment and college recruitment platform memberships, and it’s worth considering whether increasing 529 plan contributions might be a better investment.
Scholarship or Not, Club Sport is an Investment
Many consider sports expenses an investment in their child’s college scholarship prospects, but according to the NCAA, only about 2% of high school athletes are awarded athletics scholarships to compete in college.
“Even though Jill didn’t get an athletic scholarship, which is what we were obviously hoping for, she did get money toward college,” says Nancy Kellick, whose daughter, Jill, was a 2021 Gazette Peak Performer of the Year. “When she started looking at colleges, she didn’t know what she wanted to major in, but she knew she wanted to play volleyball.”
Playing club did get the St. Mary’s graduate recruited by John Carroll University, a Division III school in Ohio. The school choice influenced her decision to pursue a career as a sports chiropractor — a future her dad, Bill, says justifies the volleyball expenses.
Club sport opened doors for 2024 Coronado High School graduate Peyton Rice as well.
Like many parents, Micah and Heather Rice weren’t anticipating college offers when they sought out a diving club as a healthy outlet for Peyton.
Peyton ended up in a club at the Air Force Academy and, when the Western Colorado University dive coach contacted Peyton’s coach in search of freshman talent, the Rice family was invited to Gunnison.
“She wasn’t even thinking about going to Western. She was actually going to attend Pikes Peak State College for a couple years and then transfer out, but this was exciting for her so she ended up doing it,” Micah Rice says.
Although Peyton ended up with an injury that took her off the diving board, she loved Gunnison and is now experiencing college in a way she wouldn’t have if not for her diving club.
Plenty of Options to Play
NCAA Division I schools, including the U.S. Air Force Academy, award more than $3 billion in athletic scholarships annually, but being recruited to play D1 on a multi-year cost of attendance scholarship is rare.
Division II institutions such as the University of Colorado Colorado Springs offer partial athletics scholarships. Colorado College is an example of a local Division III school, although it does sponsor some Division I teams. In Division III, there are no athletic scholarships, but 80% of athletes do receive non-athletic aid.
Athletes can also look to National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics schools, which are comparable to NCAA DII schools but with more relaxed recruiting guidelines. Junior colleges are another outlet.
“I’d say of the kids that come through us that want to go play in college, a solid 90% go play in college. There are very few that that want to that don’t,” Campbell says.