Broomfield SC U14 Boys Academy 2 players warm up before a game against Real Colorado U14 Boys Olympico during the first day of the Broomfield Shootout youth soccer tournament on Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, at Broomfield County Commons Park in Broomfield. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post)

Pay to Play

This 4-part Denver Post special report examines how club fees, travel teams and recruiting pressure built a multi-billion dollar youth sports industry — and what it costs Colorado families

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By Kyle Newman, knewman@denverpost.com

Last year, when I first conceptualized the idea of an in-depth series on the state of youth sports, I thought it would be a topic that would be of high interest to Colorado readers.

Turns out, I was right. The series has resonated even more deeply than I imagined. It went live on Sunday morning, and in the last four days, I 've received a bigger response to it than any other story I've done in my decade-long tenure at The Denver Post.

I've gotten over 70 emails about it and was flooded with more than 150 texts as well. The response proves what a hot-button topic the business of youth sports has become. People care so much about this topic because of its hyper-relevance to communities everywhere. Whether you live in a suburb where families are practically expected to spend thousands of dollars annually on youth sports, or you live in a less affluent area where the economic opportunity gap the industry has caused hits close to home, families everywhere are wrestling with how to approach this new era of youth sports.

From the response to the series, I 've already gotten several good story leads that are worth pursuing as offshoots of this reporting. I'd encourage any readers who find this series impactful to reach out to me and share additional relevant story ideas that I can pursue.

I doubt that this series will be the last reporting you hear from me on this topic.

Wrestlers and parents look on as coach Vinny Zerban demonstrates their next drill during a practice session at Black Fox Wrestling Academy on Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in Franktown. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post)

Booming $40B youth sports industry has Colorado families spending thousands for fear of missing out

Vinny Amorosa’s rise as a budding wrestling star left his father, Joe, wrestling with his approach to the sport— and the roughly $10,000 a year his family spends chasing it. A look at how the pay-to-play model of club sports has turned youth athletics into an enormous commercial venture, underscored by what Amorosa calls “a fear-of-missing-out gig.”

Windsor Athletic FC U15 players warm up before a game against Broomfield SC during the first day of the Broomfield Shootout youth soccer tournament on Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, at Broomfield County Commons Park in Broomfield. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post)

How the youth sports industrial complex has widened the opportunity gap and diluted the neighborhood team

Travel sports have created an economic gulf between families who can pay and those who can’t. The commercialization of youth sports has also hollowed out recreational leagues and burned out athletes while draining the pockets of parents chasing Division I scholarships that are statistical long shots to pan out.

Gameday Angels 11U player Preston Brandt gets a pat on the back from teammate Caoimhin McNicholas during an AA Colorado State Championship tournament game against the Elbert County Wranglers 11U on Saturday, July 11, 2026, at the Harold D. Lutz Sports Complex in Arvada. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post)

Youth sports costs are skyrocketing. Some parents and kids say ‘it’s worth every dime.’

Nate Brandt is spending roughly $50,000 this year on club baseball for his two sons — and says he’ll do it again without hesitation. For some parents and athletes, elite travel teams offer better coaching and structure, faster development and a legitimate opportunity to be recruited. And some parents say the family experiences make the cost worth it, provided the kid actually wants to be there.

Parker Hawks Orange players, including Jax Newman (8), top center, get hyped while breaking the huddle before a 10U AA youth baseball tournament game against the Parker Hawks White on Saturday, June 20, 2026, at Evans Park in Elizabeth. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post)

Coach: Youth sports are still great, even as money and expectations irreversibly changed the game

Sportswriter Kyle Newman reflects on watching his own son’s unguarded joy in backyard wiffle ball against the pressure of real games. Newman sits with the contradiction the whole series has circled — old-school sweat equity versus present-day FOMO — and lands on cautious optimism: 55% of American youth, and 65% in Colorado, play organized sports.