NSGA Annual Sports Participation Study Shows Encouraging Youth Team Sports Growth 

CONTACT: 

Marty Maciaszek, Director of Communications 
mmaciaszek@nsga.org 
(847) 296-6742, ext. 1260 

DOWNERS GROVE, ILLINOIS (April 15, 2025) – Encouraging growth in youth team sports participation is one of the highlights of the 2025 edition of the National Sporting Goods Association’s (NSGA) Sports Participation in the U.S. report. 

The industry’s longest standing and most comprehensive participation study saw increases in nearly all youth team sports (ages 7-17) tracked by NSGA in 2024 compared to their three-year averages. The leader is flag football with an increase of 21 percent, followed by basketball and tackle football at 12 percent. 

“It is exciting to see more and more kids taking advantage of the mental and physical benefits of participating in a team sport,” said Nick Rigitano, NSGA Director of Insights and Analysis. “These increases in youth team sports are also encouraging for retailers, team dealers and manufacturers because this segment is the foundation for lifelong sports participation.” 

Some other key takeaways from NSGA’s 2025 participation report: 

• Most sports/activities tracked (35 of 56) experienced increases in participation for 2024 compared to the previous year (2023). 

• Pickleball’s boom continued as it increased 56% to 15.4 million participants. It is the third consecutive year the sport has seen an increase of more than 50% year-over-year. 

• Most sports segments tracked experienced increases in participation points compared to the previous year (2023). Participation points are used to characterize segment increases/decreases because they include both the reach (the number of people participating in the segment) and depth (the number of sports/activities those people are playing) of participation. 

• The individual sports segment saw the biggest increase (+7.4%) in participation points, led by pickleball, bowling, golf and swimming. 

• Indoor sports were up 6.9%, with table tennis, dart throwing, and billiards/pool all experiencing increases of 5% or more year-over-year. 

• Personal Contact sports were up 6.5%, led by boxing. 

• Open Water sports were up 5.2%, driven by boating (motor/power), kayaking and surfing. Snow sports were also up 5%. 

• Outdoor (+1.3%) and Shooting (+1.2%) segments were up slightly, driven by hiking and target shooting (live ammunition), respectively. 

• Wheel sports (-2.5%) and Fitness (-2.8%) were both down slightly driven by slight declines in bicycle riding and exercise walking, respectively. 

Click here to see which sports are in which segments and click here for an explanation of the Total Participation Points (TPPs) calculation. 

The 2025 editions of the Sports Participation in the U.S. report are available on the research page of NSGA’s website. The report tracks 56 sports and recreational activities and features easy-to-understand, quick-view snapshots for each, which allows users to easily see a 10-year participation trend (when available), as well as demographic details regarding age, income and U.S. region. NSGA’s participation research also includes Cross Participation, Lifecycle Demographics and Single-Sport reports. 

About the National Sporting Goods Association 

Since 1929, the National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) has been the leading voice and go-to resource for the sporting goods industry. NSGA helps the industry grow its businesses through research, advocacy and networking. For more information about membership or NSGA’s products and services, please visit www.nsga.org.