Sep 26, 2024 • 8 min read
How can youth sports coaching increase participation rates? We’ll discuss the four top ways in this guide from TeamSnap.
For a long time, the youth sports industry has understood the impact of effective coaching. Effective coaching leads to a wealth of positive outcomes for parents, organization leaders, and communities as a whole. And most importantly, it keeps kids active, involved, and participating in sports season after season.
Research dating back to 1992 proves that 20% more youth athletes opt out of continued participation when dealing with untrained coaches versus trained coaches. In today’s modern youth sports business models, where funding and revenue are paramount to continued opportunities for our youth athletes, we need to create environments for successful coaches.
In this article, we’ll cover four ways in which effective sports coaching leads to increased participation rates and a few methods to better prepare your organization’s coaches. Let’s dive in!
Long before I worked at TeamSnap, I’ve been involved with sports. I played softball, basketball, and tennis until I couldn’t anymore and then immediately transitioned into coaching. So trust me when I say, from both the player’s and coach’s perspective, that a good coach can have one simple, important effect on the team environment: player enjoyment.
Kids are FAR more likely to stay involved in sports when they have fun. Kids (people) can be fickle. And when an activity gets boring, repetitive, or no longer brings a smile to their face, the parents will find out quickly.
Enjoyment is at the heart of sustained youth sports participation. Coaches need to be able to emphasize fun, skill-building, and positive reinforcement. The results? A healthy and enjoyable environment that will make the young athletes excited to come back to practice, play in games, and go to the next tournament.
How can coaches accomplish this? Make sure practices (and games) are centered around the combination of personal growth and enjoyment. This helps the athletes feel truly connected to their sport and their teams. Structured fun keeps them engaged, preventing burnout and loss of interest. And leads to an easy win for coaching to increase sports participation rates.
I want to dive further into the importance of skill development. Even at the younger age levels, athletes have a couple of interests and priorities. It all centers around this idea of improvement. It’s natural for kids to enjoy participating in activities that they excel in. Just like in school. Is there a subject that’s more challenging for a child? Chances are this subject brings them frustration, anxiety, and even fear.
The same applies to sports. When a young athlete excels at their sport, they are far more likely to enjoy participating in it. But, we also understand that not every athlete is built the same.
Here comes the big impact of coaching. When youth sports coaches can develop individual skills for their athletes, confidence quickly follows. Athletes who are successful or see improvements are more confident. They feel more encouraged, develop good mental health habits. They grow.
Coaches who focus on skill development through a positive environment are building a culture that will keep kids coming back.
What goes into that positive environment or the ideal team culture? A lot of factors that coaching impacts! In the coaching industry, there’s a strong belief that culture starts from the top down. If a coach can build positive relationships, focus on positive qualities, and prioritize actions like support and communication, a sports team will thrive (no matter the age or competitive level).
An inclusive and supportive team culture can be the difference between a player feeling like they belong or feeling alienated. On the other hand, coaches who foster an inclusive and supportive team culture, where all players feel valued and included regardless of skill level, are more likely to retain participants and attract new players.
When kids feel like they’re an integral part of the team, they’re more likely to stay engaged. By fostering a positive, inclusive environment, coaches can create a space where kids want to play, grow, and connect with their peers, ensuring a stronger pipeline of players for years to come. Trust me, if your coach is building a positive culture, word will travel fast. From the younger siblings to the other kids at school to the parents talking between themselves, this positive culture will be known in your community.
Ah, let’s not forget the role of parents. They will certainly have an opinion about the ability for coaching to increase participation rates. I’ll put this simply. A youth athlete isn’t returning to your organization if the parent has a bad relationship with any of your coaches. There are any number of reasons strife has been built in the relationship between an individual parent and coach, but it doesn’t matter. That athlete won’t be returning, regardless of the reason.
Even if it’s less about the individual relationship, and more about the parents’ perception of your coach, the same rule applies. Those athletes will be finding a new club or league to participate in next season.
Your coaches need to build an environment that parents are comfortable with. Coaches who maintain open, clear communication with parents and demonstrate genuine care for player development are more likely to have parental support.
And then, when those parents see their child developing athletically, personally, and from a mental health perspective, your organization has gone a long way in building that ultimate team culture. Parental support is crucial.
All of these factors ladder up to the on-field performance (athlete development, fun, culture) of an individual sports team and the environment that your coaches can create. It’s a lot on the shoulders of an individual coach, especially if that coach is simply a parent volunteer (or volun-told). How can organization leaders support this? TeamSnap+ is one option to consider!
Youth sports coaches are busy. They have a lot on their plates. And, at TeamSnap, we strive to make the lives of our youth sports coaches easier. More time spent enjoying and growing on the field than paying attention to all of the details and factors that go into organizing a practice, game, tournament, or season.
Coaches are unlocking a great resource with TeamSnap+. TeamSnap+ (and TeamSnap+ Coaches Pack) gives your coaches unlimited access to our robust library of curriculums, practice plans, and drills from pro league partners… Jr. NBA, MLB, MLS, PLL, FC Barcelona, and many more. This premium coaching content is complete with everything: video examples, equipment lists, and ways to adjust based on age and skill level.
It helps every volunteer and full-time coach run fun and age-appropriate practices… even if they’ve never played the sport.
Karlee Deaver works as the Manager of Inside Sales on our Sports Organizations Sales Team. Before managing the team, Karlee began working with TeamSnap in 2021 as an individual sales representative. She worked her way up to Sales Team Lead before taking over and managing the team. Karlee has a passion for coaching in and out of work and was a TeamSnap for Business customer before joining TeamSnap. She has coached multiple state championship teams at the local high school level, and started a competitive program from the ground up, getting athletes recruited to D1 Schools like Texas A&M, Florida State, and Standford. Karlee thrives on connecting with like-minded coaches, administrators, volunteers, and athletes and enjoys spending her time on the field, she is an avid fan and season ticket holder of the University of Texas softball team and spending time with her family and friends in the Texas sunshine.