Kyle Scott Laskowski

🤳 Founder, @BuyingSandlot | Prev: Founder, @CrossingBroad

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@StJohnsShirtGuy @BuyingSandlot @KylePagan_ @njdotcom @StevePoliti I did t say they were. But PE companies, and the examples you cited, are not the sum total of “the business of youth sports.” Most of the business around youth sports isn’t those things that make for good headlines.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@StJohnsShirtGuy @BuyingSandlot @KylePagan_ @njdotcom @StevePoliti It’s up since 2019. And fares much better than other extra curriculars.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

I think you're missing the point. It doesn't exist without businesses.

Even for free or low-cost leagues (fully in support of btw!), who cuts the lawn? Who installs the fence? Who makes the bases or the net? Which companies make the equipment? Which app has the schedules, roster and team chat? Who insures the field or facility? Which company runs the background check on coaches?

Most people think about the "business of youth sports" solely as private equity rolling up leagues and clubs and charging more. That happens, sure. But it's the exception, not the rule.

And re: lower income kids: Glad you brought it up. Participation is actually up since 2019, when other extracurriculars are down: https://t.co/Tf8Y8f2YSr

Still not ideal, but there might be larger systemic issues here, not just the existence of for-profit leagues.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

My comment was that the prevailing sentiment isn't necessarily bad for the business side of youth sports.

Are there problems in youth sports? Absolutely.

But no matter how it operates, you're still going to have 30 million kids playing sports in American next year, and that requires capital, business, and community support for it to all work. Even free or low-cost recreation leagues have economies around facilities, equipment, registration platforms, officials and so on.

The point is, even if the worst instincts of youth sports change or are legislated away, there is still a substantial business community that isn't going anywhere and will continue to grow to support 63% of kids in America playing sports.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

Thank you @GovernorShapiro

[BuyingSandlot @BuyingSandlot]

Here's @KyleScottL yesterday comparing the flawless experience at the @PGAChampionship to the typical gameday experience in South Philly 😂

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@SalvatoreVitr0 @BuyingSandlot @KylePagan_ He’s making more money and talking to an audience generally made up of business executives.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

The math is there really aren’t that many parents spending $50k per year on sports. Articles find extreme examples and those kids almost certainly do possess enough talent to at least take a shot at that point. It’s not the norm. Never mind you can get $400k per year to be the third man on a mid major now.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@Wowie420Zowie @BuyingSandlot Many of these things are extracurriculars, not just academics. Never mind the pressure aspect being just as bad, if not worse, as in sports.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

Sports and academics aren’t at odds. They often co exist. And again, the extreme examples of parents making their kids jump through 100 hoops to get into Ivy League schools is not at all about making them better educated. And I’m willing to bet it happens way more than the shocking story about a parent who spends $50k on sports.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

I’d argue many of the things parents do to get their kids into elite colleges aren’t practical things they’ll ever need in life, and that they’re doing these things explicitly to get into those schools.

To be clear, I don’t agree with this in most cases. But mainstream articles have you believe 10% of parents are spending $50k per year on sports. It’s simply not true. The average parent is spending $1,000. And the mean, a lot less.

[BuyingSandlot @BuyingSandlot]

The “Google Ads” moment for youth sports has arrived 👀

Most youth sports operators don’t speak sales.

And that makes sense.

Running tournaments, leagues, facilities, and clubs is already hard enough.

Selling brand partnerships is an entirely different skill set made for companies like @BaseSportsGroup, @Fastbreakai Connect, and Campus Multimedia.

Sponsorship networks that can package inventory together at scale.

@KyleScottL believes these are some companies positioned to win in the future, "because they're able to speak that language and they have enough institutional scale that they could speak to a sponsor and say, "Hey, we gave you X number impressions and we can measure it.""

Platforms like @GetGameChanger, @Pixellotltd, and the larger tech infrastructure players now become incredibly important.

#youthsports

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@FreeRangeKids @BuyingSandlot it is

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@chadmumm 100%. rest of course fair wide open and enjoyable !

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@beingkanishka_ This what we’re doing @BuyingSandlot

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@jonaswillett1 @a16z @MTSlive @Substack You left out @BuyingSandlot

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@denk_tweets @beehiiv MCP rocks.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

"Tech is a commodity and has no value."

Here you have the CEO of a sports tech company that just raised $40M saying he places zero value on the tech he acquires.

It's the distribution, flywheels and relationships that matter-- not the code.

@Fastbreakai is consolidating the highly-fragmented $60B youth sports industry through acquisition, but they throw out all tech they acquire.

This is a canary in the coal mine for valuations.

If tech CEOs and strategic acquirers begin to discount tech in acquisitions, this squashes valuations across the board.

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

. @Fastbreakai is a youth sports tech platform worth watching.

Raised $40M Series A and targeting venture scale outcome by integrating registration, travel, ticketing, scheduling and sponsorship.

Their CEO sold his last company to Salesforce.

[BuyingSandlot @BuyingSandlot]

EXCLUSIVE: @Fastbreakai has acquired GroupHousing 🏨🏀

They'll now have 450,000 room nights on their books with a goal of reaching 1 million by 2027.

This furthers Fastbreak's push into offering solutions across youth sports. Each touchpoint provides them the opportunity to "land and expand".

CEO John Stewart told Buying Sandlot, "The additional opportunity for Fastbreak is that we just picked up a whole bunch of new operators who also need registration, they also need scheduling, they also need ticketing, they also need sponsorship, they also need compliance."

A link to our interview with CEO John Stewart is in the replies.

[BuyingSandlot @BuyingSandlot]

Youth sports isn’t just a local issue anymore. It’s becoming a national one. 🇺🇸

For years, rising costs in youth sports were an industry conversation.

Now?

They’re entering the national spotlight.

As we head into election season, one word is going to dominate:

Affordability.

#youthsports

[Kyle Scott Laskowski @KyleScottL]

@alexisohanian Youth sports as well. Morgan Lewis, among many others, at our @BuyingSandlot conference in Philly last week talking about how large the market is:

https://t.co/oxbk32Kg14

[BuyingSandlot @BuyingSandlot]

Youth sports is now tied to a $2.7 trillion market 🏀🏈

The professionalization of sports is trickling down:
- Massive pro team valuations
- NIL money in college
- Rising athlete salaries

And parents start to see it as a lottery ticket.

So what happens is they invest more, specialize earlier, and enter the club ecosystem.

And companies like @HUDL benefit.

But President Matt Mueller wants companies to remember: this is still youth sports.

If the system becomes purely a professional development pipeline access suffers, burnout increases, and enjoyment dives.

Youth sports is becoming a massive business and the future will be about finding a balance.

#youthsports