Rounding Up The Usual Suspects: The Top Five Most Expensive Youth Sports (2024)

FAQs

What are the top 5 most expensive sports? ›

Pertaining to this factor, baseball is more accessible and potentially more popular overall with average, to below-average income earning American families. Baseball games, in the year 2000, cost $20.02, while football games cost an average of $54.14.

Youth sports leagues have athletic directors that lead the charge for the entire organization. You'll also have to pay for the cost of referees, umpires, and other officials that help to maintain fairness during games. There are cleaning costs involved as well if janitors are brought in.

T he world's 50 most valuable sports teams are worth a combined $222.7 billion, 30% more than a year ago, the biggest increase in five years. The NFL continues its dominance, with 30 of its 32 teams in the top 50, making up 60% of the list.

FIFA World Cup trophy - Football- $20 million

The cup's design depicts two human figures holding up the earth. Its initial cost is $50,000, which has grown to $20 million as of 2022, making it the most expensive trophy in all sports.

Walking has to be the most affordable sport, but jogging, basketball, skating, volleyball and swimming are also fairly inexpensive. Of course, you have to consider that fees associated with sports vary according to region. Plus, renting or buying equipment second hand can make a big difference in the cost of a sport.

While 48% of families with kids participating in sports say they will find a way to make it work, 11% plan to take on debt. As far as costs go, 50% of parents plan to spend anywhere from $100 to $499 on fall sport expenses, including equipment, travel and attire. Nearly 20% of parents expect to spend over $1,000.

Running is often said to be the least expensive sport around. All that's needed is a pair of shoes, a road or a trail and you're good to go. But as it turns out, running is not as cheap as it's touted to be — at least not if you want to get serious about it.

What sport has the most expensive seats? ›

Basketball. Basketball is one of the easiest sports for kids take up. They need athletic shoes, a basketball and a place to shoot, with local playgrounds and parks often providing the hoop. A solid ball for outdoor play costs about $25 but cheaper balls are available.

It's Cheap To Play

You don't need any expensive equipment to play soccer.

According to the Deloitte rankings, FC Barcelona was named the world's richest football club in 2021.

1. Football: No matter where you travel in the globe, you will always see someone with a football at their feet. Football is the world's most popular and beloved sport, having the biggest industry share of any sport. It has a market capitalization of $600 billion and controls 43% of the global sports market.

Real Madrid is the richest football club in the world in 2022. It has a net value of $5.1 billion as of 2022. This team is based in Spain and is owned by various club members. It plays in the Spanish La Liga and is arguably the best soccer team in the world, at least financially, as of 2022.

Swimming

It may be surprising to most people that swimming is number 1 in the list of the most mentally challenging sports in the world. Many professional swimmers fall into a 7-day self-sabotage cycle. This is a period where they may doubt themselves and grow continuous stress on themselves.

What is the hardest sport trophy to win? ›

The Stanley Cup is without a doubt the hardest championship trophy to win in all of professional sports. Harder than winning the Superbowl, harder the winning the World Series, and harder than winning the NBA Title. There are 16 teams in playoff contention, only other sport that can claim the same would be the NBA.

Most of the trophies for the major sports in North America are made of precious metals, such as silver and gold, and specially crafted by artisans each year.

The current World Cup trophy weighs 6.175kg and measures 36.8cm high by 12.5cm wide. It is hollow and made from 18 carat gold (750 fineness). This means it contains 4,927 grams of pure gold.

Hands down, one of the easiest and most rewarding sport to learn is Badminton. Badminton involves two or four players on either side of the court with a racquet each and one shuttle co*ck. Each side attempts to hit the shuttle over the net and make it land in the rival's court.

Competitive swimming is expensive. And while perhaps it's not the most expensive sport out there, it's still an expense that not every family can afford. Joining a swim team and swimming on a budget though is possible.

Youth soccer is expensive, mainly due to the funding of competitions and games. To hold a youth soccer tournament or run a youth soccer league, the teams have to pay for everything involved that makes the event successful; this includes referees, turf prep, concessions stands, etc.

To get started with weightlifting only requires a set of weights or a gym membership. Badminton is also inexpensive too; you can pick up a set for $20. Table tennis is also fairly cheap to get into with a table and paddles costing under $100.

Is running a hard sport? ›

There is always a lot of strategy on starting, positioning and execution of a person's training during their race. Running requires a level of dedication and intelligence unlike any other sport.

According to Guinness World Records, the most expensive object on Earth is the Itaipu hydroelectric dam. The dam was constructed from 1971 to 1984 between Brazil and Paraguay on the Paraná River. It cost about $27 billion to build. Adjusting for inflation, that would equal just over $77 billion in 2022.

Basketball. Basketball is one of the easiest sports for kids take up. They need athletic shoes, a basketball and a place to shoot, with local playgrounds and parks often providing the hoop. A solid ball for outdoor play costs about $25 but cheaper balls are available.

While 48% of families with kids participating in sports say they will find a way to make it work, 11% plan to take on debt. As far as costs go, 50% of parents plan to spend anywhere from $100 to $499 on fall sport expenses, including equipment, travel and attire. Nearly 20% of parents expect to spend over $1,000.

From paying charter fees, and purchasing the uniforms and playing equipment, to the field and facility maintenance, it takes significant funding to play ball each year.

Competitive swimming is expensive. And while perhaps it's not the most expensive sport out there, it's still an expense that not every family can afford. Joining a swim team and swimming on a budget though is possible.

Running. This is probably the easiest and most cost-effective sporting activity in the world. Running comes naturally once a child starts walking and develops proper balance. It's not only fun, it instils a sense of confidence, builds endurance and leg strength.