The fragmented youth sports industry must seek partnerships – even with competitors – and collectively communicate with one voice about the value of physical activity, according to several nonprofit and corporate leaders.

Youth sports teams have dramatically increased their return to organized play during the past month and at a higher rate than initially expected, according to data from TeamSnap, a team management app used to schedule seasons and events.

As kids return to play, there are other health needs to consider when picking sports. How much are athletes moving their bodies? How are prevalent are injuries? How has playing a sport changed the behaviors of its athletes?

America will likely soon engage in an intense debate over football. Will the country’s most-watched sport be played this fall? And if so, how?

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the odds to access sports were stacked much higher for youth with a disability than the general population. Now, as youth sports start to return from COVID-19 in some states, the gap to access opportunities may grow even wider.

As more youth sports practices and games start to return, one question facing teams is how to keep track of compliance with so many new COVID-19 standards. Online platforms, already used to track training for concussions, SafeSport and CPR, could be a solution.

The U.S. Soccer Federation released return-to-play guidelines for youth soccer from COVID-19, recommending a phased approach with individual and small-group trainings to start and no travel tournaments in different regions even once games can resume.

Many kids are pushed out or priced out of the current youth sports system already. What steps need to be taken to avoid a participation drop after COVID-19? Can we create a model where youth sports helps the whole community recover? Read highlights from Project Play’s sixth webinar.

The risk of kids becoming infected with the coronavirus and transmitting it to adults has become a central question in whether to reopen youth sports. Data show children are getting infected at much lower rates than adults. Still, many health experts caution that it’s too soon to declare kids a lower risk.

The U.S. Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), a major provider of travel team tournaments, will host seventy baseball teams with kids ages 9 to 14 in Viera, Florida, this weekend. Many public health experts caution that travel sports should be the final phase to return in youth sports.

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, there was a national shortage of sports officials. Will there be enough officials when games return? What safety precautions are needed? How might officiating have to evolve?