Sports Training Services NAICS 611620

Mar 19, 2026 - Early Sport Specialization Has Downsides

• Early sport specialization leads to burnout, higher rates of overuse injuries, and sport dropout, according to research published in Sage Journals. The Conversation notes that young athletes are “encouraged” to spend more time specializing in their sport even before they reach their teens to gain a competitive edge. Early sport specialization often refers to year-round participation in a single sport, a trend now common across youth athletics, according to The Conversation. Examples include young hockey, basketball, and soccer players who are pushed toward club or academy teams with daily programs to stay competitive and to ensure that the “right” people can see them play. There is no time or money for other sports after becoming involved in a youth sport at a competitive level, according to The Conversation.
• American youth sports have grown into a $40 billion business according to Aspen Institute surveys, and sports training services are benefiting. The average family with kids who play sports spent $1,016 on their child’s primary sport in 2024, nearly twice what they spent in 2019. Harrison Elias, a strength and conditioning coach, started offering small group and one-on-one weight training for children after noticing growing interest in training for younger clients over the past decade, according to The New York Times. He has built a business privately coaching basketball players as young as 7. "I usually get kids who are very obsessed with the sport,” said Mr. Gerardo, whose rates start at $80 an hour, “and the parents are just as obsessed as the kids are," Elias said.

• About 45% of high school student athletes now participate in multiple sports, up from 43% in 2017-18, according to Youth Sports Business Report. Youth sports programs are embracing cross-training as result. Cross-training benefits include improved hand-eye coordination, speed development, and enhanced team collaboration skills. Multi-sport participation reduces burnout and overuse injuries while strengthening overall athletic programs, and small schools particularly benefit from multi-sport athletes who help fill rosters across different programs. Financial considerations remain a challenge for families supporting multi-sport participation, however.
• Sports training service sales are forecast to increase at a 4.52% compounded annual rate from 2025 to 2029, faster than the growth of the overall economy, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. Sports training industry employment decreased moderately during the first 11 months of 2025, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.