Sports Training Services

The 18,700 sports training service providers in the US offer instruction in athletic activities. The industry includes personal trainers, which operate independently from a sports facility. Firms may specialize in a particular sport or exercise, such as tennis or yoga, or provide general athletic training.

Competition From Alternative Providers

Sports training service providers compete with a variety of alternative sources, including fitness clubs, recreation centers, schools, other types of camps (academic, scouting), and videos (YouTube, DVDs).

Aug 4, 2026 - Studies Compare AI Tools To Personal Trainers

• AI fitness tools help democratize fitness knowledge but access to fitness knowledge may not be the same as access to fitness coaching, according to two studies which compared ChatGPT and human fitness professionals. AI tools excelled at answering fitness questions and creating a personalized fitness program but not in all areas of training assistance. The degree of nuance required in helping clients stay motivated, work around injuries, and safely push their limits requires continuous monitoring and communication, which may only be available from human fitness professionals, according to the Journal of Medical Internet Research.
• Participation in sports reached a new high in the US in 2025 but the year-over-year participation growth of 1.2% was a slight moderation from the 1.7% average annual growth rate since 2020, according to the Sports & Fitness Association (SFIA). About 250 million Americans participated at least once in sports, fitness, or leisure activities for the first time since the association began tracking sports participation data. Team sports recorded the strongest year-over-year growth, surpassing 90 million total participants for the first time, and pickleball continues its five-year streak as the fastest-growing sport.
• More preteen athletes are booking sessions with personal sports trainers, according to The New York Times. Professional-level sports coaching has long been available for elite high school athletes but sports training services are bringing it to elementary schoolers, both for specific sports and for general fitness. 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.
• Sports training service sales are forecast to increase at a 5.28% compounded annual rate from 2026 to 2030, faster than the growth of the overall economy, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. Sports training industry employment increased significantly during the first six months of 2026, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Industry size & Structure

The average sports training service provider operates out of a single location, employs 10 workers, and generates about $625,800 annually.

• The sports training services industry consists of about 18,700 firms that employ about 183,900 workers and generate $11.7 billion annually.
• The sports training services industry is fragmented; the top 50 companies account for 14% of industry revenue. In the nonprofit sector, the top 50 companies account for 30% of sector revenue.
• Small, independent organizations account for the vast majority of the industry. Large organizations offer services through local chapters.