Boys Sports Participation Is Falling, and a New Aspen Report Points to Coaching and Access

• Regular sports participation among boys ages 6 to 17 slid from 50% in 2013 to 42% in 2024, according to SFIA data cited in the report.
• Nearly half of boys who never played organized sports (49.5%) told the 2025 Youth Athlete Survey that fear of injury kept them out.
• Current male athletes named bad coaching as their top complaint at 22%, ahead of cost at 17%, per the survey.
• The report identifies the Meta state settlement, data center agreements, and sports betting revenue as potential funding sources for new programs.

The Aspen Institute’s Project Play and the American Institute for Boys and Men (AIBM) released “Boys in Sports” in September 2026. The report examines why boys sports participation is declining while girls’ participation has grown. Citing Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) data, the report says the share of boys ages 6 to 17 who play sports regularly fell from 50% in 2013 to 42% in 2024.

The research draws on four sources:

• the 2025 Youth Athlete Survey of 3,827 youth ages 10 to 17
• the 2022 National Coach Survey of 10,485 coaches
• four focus groups with 20 boys
• six expert interviews

The authors state that the prevalence and causal importance of the barriers they identify remain uncertain.

How Far Has Boys Sports Participation Dropped?

The decline shows up across multiple national datasets, according to the report. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey shows high school boys playing on at least one team fell from a 2011 peak of 64% to 56% in 2023. University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future survey, per AIBM’s analysis, shows 12th-grade boys on school teams dropped from 65% in 2013 to roughly 53% to 55% in the post-pandemic years.

Traditional boys sports are losing ground fastest. SFIA data cited in the report shows the following five-year declines:

• Baseball: down 19% among ages 6 to 12 and 16% among ages 13 to 17
• Tackle football: down 7% and 9% for the same age groups

Boys still participate at higher rates than girls, the report notes, but their trend line is moving in the opposite direction.

Coaching, Injury Fears, and Public Failure Keep Boys Out

The 2025 Youth Athlete Survey found that the barriers differ by segment. Bad coaching was the most cited complaint among current male athletes at 22%, followed by cost at 17%. Among boys who quit, “I’m not good enough” led at 28%. Among boys who never played, the same answer led at 31%, with “my friends don’t play” close behind at 30%.

Injury is a major deterrent. According to the survey, 49.5% of never-players said fear of injury kept them from playing, and football was the sport cited most often.

Coaches report gaps in the areas boys say they need most. Per the 2022 National Coach Survey, baseball coaches felt least confident linking athletes to mental health resources and helping them navigate social media.

Cory Stevens, athletic director at Sandwich High School in Illinois, told researchers that today’s players are “looking for more empathetic coaches.”

The report also flags phone recording and social media as amplifiers of pressure. Focus group participants described skipping tryouts to avoid ridicule if they performed poorly.

The Missing Middle: Low-Stakes Play for High School Boys

None of the 20 focus group participants had ever played intramurals in middle or high school, according to the report. The authors describe unmet demand for low-cost, entry-level options for late starters and late developers. They cite several working models:

• John Rogers High School, Spokane, Washington: Athletic director Aaron Brecek added extra teams in high-demand sports that compete in an in-school intramural league. Weekly winners earn the chance to represent the school in official uniforms. Brecek says two peer schools in Spokane have adopted a similar model.
• Alexandria City High School, Virginia: The school partnered with the Alexandria Soccer Association to offer free recreational play to students cut at tryouts, in exchange for access to school fields.
• San Francisco Youth Soccer: The organization created a “Varsity Division” for high school teens with no experience required.

Gaming also plays a role. Per the survey, 55% of boys who never played organized sports said video games increased their interest in sports. By contrast, 27% of former athletes said gaming reduced their interest.

Meta Settlement Dollars and Betting Revenue Could Fund the Next Intramural League

The report recommends that every school receiving federal support run an annual student interest survey and publish the results. It also calls on federal Title IX guidance to count intramural and club programs as meaningful athletic opportunities.

To pay for expansion, the report points to several existing and proposed funding streams:

• Meta state settlement: at least $12.1 billion over ten years, with after-school sports programs listed as a permissible use.
• Data center agreements: Google committed $4 million over five years to community projects in Botetourt County, Virginia.
• New York sports betting: the state directs $5 million annually from mobile sports betting to underserved youth programs. Pending legislation from State Sen. Jamaal Bailey would dedicate up to 2% of that revenue, capped at $23 million, to youth sports.
• Massachusetts sports betting: the state directs 1% of its Sports Wagering Fund to youth development, including athletics.

The report’s clearest proof of concept is local. In Oakland, Stephen and Ayesha Curry’s foundation partnered with middle schools to add more sports, and participation rose from 17% in 2021 to 62% in 2026.

Source: Aspen Institute Project Play and American Institute for Boys and Men, September 2026, https://www.aspeninstitute.org/