GG Galore: Betting on Youth Football?

What are we doing, America?

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Happy New Year friends! (Still ok to say by modified Larry David standards - don’t judge!)

Hope you all had a relaxing break from the daily grind of youth sports. Wish I could report about a Caribbean vacation or simply bingeing a great new series from the confines of my couch. Instead, I’m writing you from an overly air-conditioned Starbucks in Phoenix at the tail end of a five-day intense regional soccer tourney we as a family decided our older son “shouldn’t miss.” It was an emotional roller coaster of an experience from both a maturity and soccer standpoint. Our kid got another sample in his quest to eventually figure out what he loves and doesn’t about the sport and how it compares to the other sports he plays. We learned a multitude of lessons as sports parents, including a reminder that not all 13-year-olds are ready to embrace sharing a small hotel room with three dudes they don’t know. Also, holy crap, the disparity in size and maturity among 13-year-old boys is just insane.

In any event, I wanted to reach out and offer you a little amuse bouche as we really hit the ground re-running this week. Lots of youth sports distilling coming your way. But for now here are some recent youth sports news and columns that caught my eye.

You can bet on youth football. This is not ok.

A Forbes story details how one gambling outfit, BetOnline, recently delved into the youth football market. Check out this mid-December tweet from BetOnline’s brand marketing manager.

Forbes conducted a Q&A with Mason about entering the youth football market. His first answer was arguably his most disturbing.

Forbes: Regulated sportsbooks find gambling on minors immoral in some respects, but you guys don’t. What’s BetOnline’s argument for this being a legal and approved thing to bet on?

Dave Mason: We can’t speak for other operators and their offerings, but BetOnline.ag is globally respected for offering odds on just about anything. We offer odds on pro wrestling, which are predetermined events. Where there are two or more competing in a sanctioned event, we’re going to have a market to bet on that event.

I will point to the Olympics as an example, which witnessed widespread wagering this year. There were 12- and 13-year-olds competing in the Summer Games and people could wager on those events. Same goes for professional soccer leagues on a global level. Allowing people to wager on youth football only puts more eyeballs on these leagues, teams and their incredibly talented athletes.

Ah, the old well, Johnny was mooning everyone so I should be able to as well excuse. Youth football currently gets plenty of attention. The last thing it needs is a bunch of degenerate gamblers putting more pressure on the kids, coaches, and refs. Not to mention rolling out the red carpet for future degenerate gamblers.

Relatedly, have you checked out ESPN Bet yet? As a good friend pointed out, while ESPN Bet is not technically marketing to kids, too much of the brand’s ascetic and content appears to be marketed to kids. This beginner’s guide that includes topics like What is a parlay? looks like a children’s book for 6-year-olds. Sigh.

How Caitlin Clark’s parents helped her avoid burnout

The Indiana Fever star, appearing on a recent episode of New Heights with Jason Kelce and Taylor Swift’s beau, had a lot to say about her youth sports journey. She specifically credited her parents with limiting the number of games Clark would play in a day. Clark played high school ball and AAU where she was often coveted as a guest player.

“My mom would be like, she is not playing more than like three games or two games in one day. That’s crazy,” Clark told the Kelce brothers.

She went on to talk about the importance of still loving the sport if you’re lucky to do it enough as a pro. Clark also applauded her parents for not pushing her to specialize in basketball too early - she was also a star soccer player. Clark didn’t drop soccer until her junior year in high school after being a starter her freshman and sophomore years.

“Sometimes that’s why people get burnt out—because they did it too much as a kid and their parents forced them, or whoever forced it on them too much.”

[Love this from Clark and hope it resonates with parents of young athletes in danger of burnout. But have to admit, I think three basketball games in a day is crazy.]

Luca Dončić Foundation releases extensive look inside youth basketball

Keeping the basketball news flowing with Dončić, whose foundation just released an eye-opening report of the state of youth basketball including some important comps between the US and the Balkans. The Mavs guard is deeply invested in replacing the pressure young hoopers feel with the joy that defined his experience as a kid. The Luca Dončić Foundation interviewed 30 experts (including scouts) and 1254 basketball parents. Basketball parents can and should read the full report, but here are some key findings:

• Balkan basketball culture is rooted in passing and constant off ball movement. Only 15% of them say that youth basketball focuses on individual star power over team play.

• In contrast, 43% of U.S. parents say youth basketball focuses on individual star power.

• Social media is a killer. Young players in the U.S. get discouraged when they can’t replicate the spectacular plays they see online or frustrated when they see peers share highlight reels even when they weren’t “good.”

• 400,000 U.S. girls are playing basketball in high school and have a significantly better outlook than their Balkan counterparts. One Slovenian player cited 9pm or later practices for girls, while boys get earlier slots. Girls’ programs also have to utilize hand-me down equipment and have limited opportunities.

• Nearly half of U.S. basketball parents reported their children have become better people through the game developing discipline, confidence, and empathy.

More youth sports tidbits:

This Boston Herald column argues that tennis is leading the way in access for kids of all ages and abilities and that other sports should follow suit.

A melee following a technical foul call resulted in a New York basketball coach punching a ref at a youth tourney in Pennsylvania. The assaulted ref was left bloodied and with a chipped tooth. When will the madness stop?

Perhaps these vile coaches and parents could year a lesson in decency from the Minuteman Flames, a team of 14-year-old hockey players from Boston. Following an intense OT win in a recent tournament in Toronto, the Flames joined their opponent to circle around the distraught losing goalie. What ensued was a bevy of heartwarming hand shakes and hugs - the opposite of a melee.

A partner in family law shares her advice for those co-parenting in youth sports.

More Good Game coming later this week….