Pickleball is a hit with kids, but interest in team sports drops

 

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Washington Post KidsPost By Fred Bowen

ASPEN INSTITUTE’S NEW ‘STATE OF PLAY 2022’ REPORT SHOWS POSITIVES BUT ALSO DISAPPOINTING TRENDS IN YOUTH SPORTS.

The Aspen Institute recently issued its annual report on kids’ sports called “State of Play 2022.” The Aspen Institute is an organization that studies lots of important issues, including kids’ sports.

The report is full of interesting facts and trends that have occurred in the games kids play. So let’s take a look.

Here are the five favorite competitive sports among kids ages 6 to 12:

1. Basketball
2. Baseball
3. Soccer
4. Tennis
5. Football, if you combine tackle and flag.
(Bike riding is still kids’ favorite activity.)

Another racket game that grew like wild is pickleball. The sport with the funny name is popular with grandparents, but kids like to play, too. Pickleball grew an amazing 83 percent from 2019 to 2021, attracting almost a half-million regular players among people ages 6 to 17.

One reason for pickleball’s popularity among young people is that a big star in professional pickleball is a teenager: 15-year-old Anna Leigh Waters. (Read More)