Boys Are Leaving Youth Sports. A New Aspen Report Says Bad Coaching Is the Top Complaint. Here Is What That Means for Martial Arts Schools.

American boys are playing less organized sport than they did a decade ago, and when they are asked what they dislike about it, the coach comes first. A new report from the Aspen Institute and the American Institute for Boys and Men does not mention martial arts once. It describes, almost line by line, the family a well-run school is built to serve.

The decline, by every measure

The losses are concentrated in the traditional boys’ team sports. SFIA data cited in the report shows baseball participation down 19% among 6- to 12-year-olds and 16% among 13- to 17-year-olds over five years; tackle football fell 7% and 9% for the same groups.

Why boys say they quit, or never start

The report draws on a 2025 youth athlete survey. The answers differ by group:

• Boys who play now most often named bad coaching (22%) as their least favourite part of sport, followed by cost (17%) and fear of injury (15%).
• Boys who used to play most often said “I’m not good enough” (28%), followed by bad coaching (20%).
• Boys who never played said “I’m not good enough” (31%) and “my friends don’t play” (30%). Nearly half (49.5%) said fear of injury kept them out. And 23% said “having a coach who cares about me” would be a main reason to join.

In focus groups, one boy said individual sports were easier to enjoy because he could see his own improvement. Others preferred low-stakes, no-cut formats where they actually got to play. The authors caution that the focus groups were a convenience sample of 20 boys, so those comments illustrate experiences rather than measure them.

Why this matters to a martial arts school

None of what follows is in the report; it is this journal’s reading of what the report’s findings mean for a school owner. Read the complaints again with a martial arts programme in mind:

• “I’m not good enough.” There are no cuts in a martial arts school. A belt system measures a boy against his own last test, not against the starting line-up. That is exactly the individual, visible progress the boys in the focus groups described.
• “Bad coaching” and “a coach who cares about me.” A martial arts instructor sees the same child two or three times a week, often for years. That is the relationship these boys say they want. It is also the standard parents will hold you to.
• “My friends don’t play.” Buddy days and friend passes answer this objection directly.
• Fear of injury. Half of the boys who never played named it. Parents of those boys need to see how contact is introduced, supervised and controlled in your classes before they will sign.
• Cost. It is the second complaint of current athletes. Tuition that is presented clearly, with no surprise fees, matters more than the headline price.

What school owners can do this season

1. Market to the boy who got cut. Fall is when school teams make their cuts. Messaging built around “no cuts, no bench, your own pace” speaks to the largest group of former athletes in the report.
2. Put your instructors in front of the decision. If bad coaching is why boys leave, the instructor who teaches the trial class is your most important sales asset. Train them as carefully as your front desk.
3. Show how you manage contact. Explain your progression to sparring on the website and in the first conversation with parents.
4. Use friends. A bring-a-friend week converts the “my friends don’t play” objection into referrals.
5. Adopt the report’s own coaching recommendations. The authors call for training coaches in holistic development and mental health, clear anti-hazing and anti-bullying standards with reporting procedures, and limits on phones and recording. Each is a written policy a school can adopt and show parents.

For more on keeping the students you enroll, see our Enrollment & Retention section.

Frequently asked questions

How much has boys’ sports participation fallen?
According to SFIA data cited in the report, the share of boys aged 6–17 who regularly play sports fell from 50% in 2013 to 42% in 2024.

What is the top reason boys give for disliking sports?
Among boys who currently play, bad coaching (22%), followed by cost (17%) and fear of injury (15%). Among boys who quit or never started, “I’m not good enough” was the top answer.

Does the report include martial arts?
No. It contains no martial arts, boxing or combat-sports participation data.

Who published the report?
The Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program, which runs Project Play, with the American Institute for Boys and Men, in September 2026.