Money — we all want or need it and for an athlete who wants to play sports, it is necessary.
All of the equipment, uniforms and registration fees can cost a pretty penny.
Some students on campus shared their stories on whether or not money was the deciding factor in their early sports careers.
Sophomore tennis player Serena Cooper never had to worry about the financial struggles when it came to buying sports equipment.
“It was not difficult for me to afford playing any sport I want because my parents gave me what I need and wanted,” Cooper said.
“Money isn’t really a problem for me because my parents made sure I always had sporting equipment and uniforms,” Cooper said.
An article from the Huffington Post reported that in the United States, parents spend $671 on average per year to cover the costs of uniforms and the hefty fees charged for registration, lessons and coaching. The article also reports that it is a growing five billion dollars a year industry.
“Growing up my parents always made sure I had the equipment for all of my sports and that it was in good condition,” Taylor Mack, field hockey and softball player, said.
Mack recognized that having all new sports equipment probably put pressure on her parents to keep up financially.
“About every two years for a new composite bat, it costs close to $350,” Mack said.
“I do feel it takes an incredible amount of money to keep up with sports, fortunately there are more organizations to help financially challenged kids play sports,” Mack said.
Kids Play USA Foundation reports that for one child to play one sport each season it can cost anywhere from $500 to $5,000. The organization says over $3.5 billion has been cut from sports programs in public schools over the past two years.
“To play baseball when I was younger, it didn’t cost that much for my gloves, shirt, pants or cleats,” freshman roller hockey player Tyree Holmes said. “The most it would ever cost my parents is around $100 dollars, so not too expensive.”
“I think the cost of playing a sport is cheaper when you’re in college,” Holmes said. “When you’re a part of a team they usually pay for a lot of the stuff you need.”
“This year was the most expensive to buy equipment for roller hockey and that was all inclusive about $400,” Holmes said.
Some kids need sports as an outlet or release from their daily problems, which leaves parents with low-income struggling to pay for the costs every year.
