Youth sports should give children a chance to compete, build confidence and learn the value of teamwork. But for too many families, rising costs and growing commercialization are making it harder for kids to participate. I sat down with @TomFarrey for a conversation about how youth sports are changing and what can be done to ensure more children have the opportunity to play. Watch here: youtu.be/tmAvwCvslOI

‘Travel sports,’ a term that has come to encompass all sorts of private teams, leagues, and clubs, used to be for the truly exceptional young athlete. Now, they’re for anyone willing to pay — an expensive, exhausting commitment that has become popular not necessarily because millions of parents want them for their children but because it can feel like there’s no other choice. Rec programs are underfunded and struggle to compete with for-profit leagues for prime field, rink, and court times. And the level of play is diluted, often very early, as travel teams are incentivized to enroll children at young ages. Around 5 million children in the U.S. now compete on travel teams. Parents find themselves trapped. They know the benefits of sports and want that for their children, yet giving it to them often means buying into a sports ecosystem that’s inherently flawed. As the pay-to-play model increasingly takes hold, so does the idea that kids should start competing at younger and younger ages, risking their sense of self along with their shoulders and ACLs. “I never want my kids to look back and say I didn’t do everything I could to help them live their dreams,” a mother of three soccer players said. She’s hired professional photographers to take action shots for her 12- and 13-year-olds’ Instagram accounts — the platform has become a recruiting tool — and they’ve both asked her to pay for personal trainers. “I think the word isn’t ‘specialize’; you are ‘professionalizing’ your kid early. You are exposing them to everything professionals have to deal with — I’m talking injury, time, schedule, everything,” said John Van Benschoten, a former MLB player and travel-baseball coach. It makes one ask: All this for what? And for whom? Read Caitlin Moscatello’s cover story on how travel leagues have made youth sports more expensive, hypercompetitive, and all-consuming — and the investors who are making a killing: nymag.visitlink.me/1-gbZQ

Lots of youth soccer discourse in the aftermath of the USMNT's World Cup exit. So, I wrote about "pay-to-play" — what it actually is, why it's a problem, why it's different in the U.S. vs. elsewhere, and why the real issue is "pay-to-travel-and-play": nytimes.com/athletic/7435754…

Dr. Russell Barkley, drawing from 20+ years of twin studies, behavior genetics, and neuroimaging: Parenting isn't engineering a blank slate—it's shepherding a unique genetic mosaic already loaded with 400+ psychological traits that emerge mostly on their own timetable. You provide the pasture: safe, nourishing environments with adequate (not excessive) stimulation, protection from harm, and access to rich out-of-home influences (peers, schools, neighborhoods, community—the biggest shaper after genetics, per Judith Harris in The Nurture Assumption). But you don't redesign the sheep. No prenatal Mozart, no overload of crib toys turns threshold development into engineered genius. Extra stimulation past basics yields diminishing returns; "more is better" is a cultural illusion, not biology. Data is stark: Parental influence on core traits peaks before 7, plummets to ~6% in teens, hits zero after 21. Knowledge transfers via exposure—yes. Personality, abilities, temperament? Largely genetics + broader world. This frees parents from crushing guilt ("If my child struggles, I failed"). Instead: Curate wisely, then enjoy watching the individual unfold. Open the Chardonnay, kick back—the show is brief. Short of abuse/neglect/malnutrition, in-home tweaks are often trivial next to where you choose to live and the doors it opens. Shepherd, not engineer. Let them grow into who they already are. Does this shift relieve pressure—or challenge how you view "success" in raising kids?

We’re thrilled to launch Why We Play, a groundbreaking conversation series with athletes, artists and authors on how sport has shaped modern society. Explore our newest multi-year project: aspeninstitute.org/programs/…