Sports Training Services NAICS 611620

Jun 2, 2026 - Sports Participation Increase Continues

• 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.

• 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 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 slightly during the first two months of 2026, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.