Youth Sports: Children Turning to Tackle Football

In my American Sport in the 21st Century class we learned

about the risk of children playing football due to the many head injuries that are caused by playing the sport. My class discussed how many 

Concussions are
75% more likely in tackle football than any other
 sport in the country.

parents are forcing their kids to play alternative sports so the risk of injuries is not as high. One of those alternatives are flag football. In an article wrote by Sarah Mackulin on February 15^th, 2016 for pghflagfootball.com shows how parents are frightened by their children playing tackle football. In this article Mackulin shows that one parent puts their son into flag football because it teaches him the game and doesn’t have him injured by the age of 8. Some parents also stated in the article that their children are too small and this sport keeps them active without the high risk of injuries. Mackulin also states a study done by the Sports Concussion Institute in which they say that concussions are 75% more likely in tackle football than any other sport in the country. That statistic alone is terrifying those parents whose children want to play youth tackle football. If I have a son in the future I know I will be hesitant when it comes to him playing tackle football. I would not want my child to have significant injuries that could hinder his life in the future. It is scary for the youth in today’s society and it is scary for football as a whole because if more kids play football then more of them could obtain injuries and gravitate to different alternatives as we discussed in class. Throughout my class I learned that concussions are a scary thought especially if you are a sport manager because the youth is our future. You can read Mackulin's full article by following the link below:

http://www.pghflagfootball.com/news_article/show/612183?referrer_id=187103

Should youth tackle football be age restricted? Yes.
Should flag football be a more publicized sport for youth athletes? Yes.
Are concussions hurting the sport industry? Yes.

Why do children participate in sport? Look at the model that we learned about in class below.

Genetic Make up of Parents -> Childs Genetic Make Up -> Socialization via Socialization Agents ->
Motivation to Participate in Sport -> Participation in Sport